


[Ongoing] Castiel in Real Life

by siriuslyelmo



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Awesome Charlie Bradbury, Bottom Castiel (Supernatural), Castiel Has a Crush on Dean Winchester, Castiel and Abaddon are twins, Castiel is Older Than Dean Winchester, Castiel is friends with Jody Mills, Castiel owns a siberian husky and a black cat, Charlie Bradbury & Castiel Friendship, Charlie Bradbury Ships Castiel/Dean Winchester, Charlie and Castiel on a road trip, Dean Winchester is Allergic to Cats, Family Misunderstanding, Freelancer!Castiel, Inspired by Dan In Real Life, Librarian!Mick Davies, Linguistic!Castiel, M/M, Mention of Donna Hanscum, Pansexual Castiel (Supernatural), Polyglot Castiel, Researcher!Abaddon, Slice of Life, Slow Burn, Slow Burn Castiel/Dean Winchester, Who breaks heart left and right, benny and dean are roommates, lake house weekend, mention of Benny Lafitte - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:40:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 37,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26181277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/siriuslyelmo/pseuds/siriuslyelmo
Summary: Castiel woke up in a room of a stranger, all alone. He thought it was a one night stand turned downhill. Until he met the roommate.
Relationships: Abaddon/Dean Winchester, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Castiel/Mick Davies
Comments: 3
Kudos: 10





	1. The Walk of Shame

**Author's Note:**

> I've been wanting to make a fanfic where Castiel and Abaddon are twin siblings who break hearts left and right since I saw several photos of Misha and Alaina, where they look intimidatingly and unforgivably gorgeous together.
> 
> Another idea that made me came up with this story was my love for the film, Dan In Real Life, for the past few weeks, or months. Well, ever since I developed a crush on Steve Carell. It was such a heart-warming and adorable film, and I just have to make a Dean/Castiel version out of it. And make it less PG-13, of course.
> 
> So, if you made it this far, on this short note, welcome to the first chapter of Castiel In Real Life.

There were two kinds of mornings in Castiel's life; the ones where he woke up and got ready to work, and the ones where he woke up and _wondered_ where the hell he was. 

Today was the latter. Castiel opened his eyes and instantly noticed that the ceilings were not of his room. Not only the roofs but also the bed he was sleeping in and the smell of his surroundings. 

It stenched of _sex_.

Castiel groaned and sat up. He was having difficulties in fully opening his eyes, all he could do was squint, and it wasn't only because of the sun rays coming into the room in all of its glory. He then swept his eyes on his surroundings. He noticed that he was _butt naked_ on the bed; his clothes were spread _around_ the room. His jeans were on one end-corner of the mattress, his t-shirt somehow landed on the telly across the bed, and his jacket was on the floor. He tried to search for his underwear, but he couldn't find it, and he was still too lazy to get up and searched.

It took him around five minutes to decide which one to wear first, before finally deciding to sit there a little longer. The bed was really comfortable, and he almost fell asleep _again_. His back was sore, and he found there was a rug burn on both of his knees.

 _How did that happen?_

Castiel yawned and continued to look around. He found that the room he was currently in was considered small — smaller than his own. There was a window on one of the corners, and based on what he could take a glimpse of, it was facing the street. The flat-screen TV — the one that had his t-shirt on it — was mounted on the wall, with a shelf filled with games, Xbox, below it. Right in front of him, on the side of the bed, was a wardrobe with a _mirror_ on one of the sliding doors. 

Considered of its location in the room, having sex on this bed would be one fantastic experience, which was quite a shame since Castiel could hardly remember _anything_ from his experience last night. 

He started to track back his path. He remembered finishing work at home, then got ready for his night out with Balthazar and Charlie. They did several shots, and other drinks for Castiel, since some people sent him several glasses of liquors. 

It would be rude to say no, he thought. 

As usual, he had a few too many drinks and started to dance with Balthazar on the dance floor. Not that he was a good dancer, really. Then, just like the other night out, Castiel would find him someone who could help him release his tensions.

That would be a lie.

 _Horniness._ That was the correct term. Castiel would find someone who could help him release his horniness. 

Last night was no difference, he was sure, only he couldn't remember the man who became his conquest. This morning wasn't any help at all, since the man disappeared from this very bed.

He turned to the bedside table — or something resembled it — next to the bed and found his phone there. He checked the time, eight in the morning and two unread text messages from the only woman he would give much affection lovingly. She asked where he was and if a breakfast meet-up is possible.

Castiel sent a reply telling her to give him the address, and he would meet her there. Then he _finally_ got up and looked for his underwear, which later he found was under his jacket, then wore the rest of his clothes. Before he put on his clothes, Castiel checked on the mirror whether there were any signs of violence on his body, since he couldn’t remember anything from last night. After turning around _twice_ in front of the sliding door, he let out a sigh of relief that there was nothing suspicious on his skin, then he got dressed.

When he was doing the buttons of his shirt, his phone chirped; it was the address of a diner where they would meet up. He consulted Google Map on his phone and learnt that it was nearby. 

Then again, she might track his phone and try to find a place close to where he was now. Maybe. Not that it never happened before with her.

There was a faint sound coming from outside of the room, and it highly resembled one of the theme songs of a Saturday morning cartoon. Castiel froze on his spot and prayed to whatever god that would listen to him that he was not in the room of a teenager. _Queer As Folk_ was just a TV series, and it should _not_ become his life.

He took his phone and keys, then picked up his jacket from the floor before walking out of the room quietly. With his eyes half-closed, he whispered "Please, let it be _South Park_ " as a personal prayer chant while making his way out from the bedroom. Although, he knew the chance of the music that he heard before was from _South Park_ is just as likely as the Earth is flat.

On the other hand, his prayer chant might be _worked_ after all. 

As Castiel found the source of sound in the living room, he also saw a man — a full-grown man — spread out on the sofa, in a t-shirt and a boxer. He was watching _Scooby-Doo_.

To be honest, Castiel didn't remember if that was the man he spent the night with.

"Uh, hi?"

The man turned, and as he saw who was behind him, he got up, "Hey. You're up."

It was probably the _longest_ five seconds in Castiel's life. Stood still in a stranger's living room, face to face with a man he ultimately had no idea who. Waited for him to provide a hint, even in the slightest, if he was the man Castiel slept with or not. 

Although to be fair, if it were _him_ , Castiel would most definitely remember it. The man in front of him was well-built, _exceptionally_ well-built, he had the most delicious broad shoulders Castiel had ever seen. His messy floppy brown hair had some strands fell to his forehead, and his bright green eyes were almost hypnotising. Then the scruff — oh, the _scruff_ — Castiel would love to run his fingers on them, while the green-eyed man pounded into him.

_Wait._

"So, you're looking for Benny?"

Benny. Did that sound like the name of a man Castiel would sleep with last night? 

"Uh, yes?"

"He's out, I don't know where he went, or when he's gonna be back, honestly," the broad-shouldered man replied as he extended his hand, "my name's Dean. I'm Benny's roommate, don't worry. _Not_ his boyfriend or anything."

"Oh, hello," the guest took the hand and let out an awkward chuckle, and wasn't a relieved one. "I'm Castiel. Nice to meet you, Dean. I'm sorry if there's any inconvenience caused last night."

Dean waved his hand, "Don't worry. I get it; it was Friday night and all. Anyway, don't take this as an offence, but you look _terrible_. Do you want anything? A glass of water, Aspirin, a cup of tea?"

_What?_

Castiel blinked owlishly at the shots of question. "Uh, I … yes?" 

“Yeah, I need you to be more specific, buddy.”

Castiel suddenly felt stupid when Dean said that, and he let out a nervous laugh, "I-I'm sorry, a glass of water would do, thanks. Dean."

The host smiled and walked past Castiel to the kitchen — suddenly, a faint aroma of musk filled the air between them — and pulled a plastic container from on top of the fridge. Then he went to fill a glass with tap water. "Here's your water, Castiel."

"Thanks, Dean," he could feel a slight shiver on his spine when he heard Dean's friendly baritone voice called his name. Castiel approached the kitchen table and drank the water. It was _fucking_ refreshing. He didn't even realise that his mouth was _that_ dry.

"Here," Dean pushed a pack of Aspirin from the plastic container, before returning it to the top of the fridge.

Once again, Castiel blinked owlishly at Dean. He _really_ wasn't the man Castiel sleeping with, right? Why did he take care of him _this_ much, even in a tough love kind of way? "Cheers," Castiel took the pill and drank the water to push it.

"So, Castiel? That's your name?"

Again, the shiver was back, "Yeah, my parents have a thing for celestial names. I have a big brother named Lucifer before you asked."

" _Seriously?_ " Dean laughed, then he turned to get a mug for himself, "Okay, sorry for asking this. Is he-is he a douche?"

This time it was Castiel's turn to scoff, "Well, let's say I don't talk much with him anymore these days. We're twelve years apart in the first place anyway, so yeah."

"Oh. Sorry, man, shouldn't ask that," Dean paused on his steps and placed the mug on the kitchen table while looking at Castiel apologetically. 

"Hey, no worries. I threw you the bait," Castiel raised both of his hands, "if you didn't ask, I might provide you the information anyway."

"Ouch," Dean chuckled and stepped to open the fridge, "anyway, you want some juice? Or maybe breakfast? I'm planning to make pancakes today."

Castiel was really taken aback with the familiarity from Dean. It was probably the first time his sexual adventure took an unusual turn from the roommate. "Orange juice sounds good. But, I might pass on the pancakes. I already have a plan to meet someone, uh, my sister."

Castiel watched as Dean took out a box of orange juice and poured it into both glasses. As the kitchen table only separated them, Castiel realised that he could see the freckles that covered Dean's face. He swallowed and fantasised of counting them from up close. And to remember that freckles were signs of an angel's kisses, maybe Castiel could make his own trace of those on Dean's fa-

"I think that's really nice," Dean's voice cut Castiel's imagination.

"I-I beg your pardon?"

"Having a sibling who you can spend a good time with. Even now as you both had grown up," Dean answered, _utterly_ oblivious of what was going on inside Castiel's mind. “I have a little brother who lives on the other side of the city, and we usually meet up for dinner or just for a cup of coffee. SOmetimes with his girlfriend as well. Lovely girl.”

It might not have sounded like it, but Castiel knew he made an awkward laugh. "Yeah, it is. That sounds nice," he played with the glass, then remembered that he _actually_ had to go. "So, um, do you mind telling Benny, when he's back, that I-?"

"Yeah, certainly, don't worry about it. A real pleasure to meet you, Castiel, even for a short time," Dean smiled as if meeting Benny's one-night stand partners is one of his Saturday morning habits. Well, _maybe_ it was.

"Thanks, Dean. See you around. Thank you for the morning after refreshments," Castiel lifted the glass and walked to the sink.

"Just put it there. I'm going to make more of those dirty dishes later after cooking," Dean said without turning his head to where Castiel was. "Oh, by the way, your shoes are next to the door."

"Jesus Christ, I really made a mess last night, am I?" Castiel jogged to the door and put on his shoes. He heard Dean laughed, and it was contagious, as he found himself chuckled while pushing his feet into the boots. "Okay, I'm off. Thanks again, Dean."

The host gave him a salute that Castiel returned with a light wave before he walked out of the flat. It was convenient that Dean and Benny’s unit was on the ground floor and right in front of the main street. After a few steps, Castiel turned slowly, wondering if he could catch a glimpse of Dean through the curtains on the window, that he recognised would look to the kitchen. But, he couldn't see past it. Obviously.

So, he continued to walk to the nearest bus stop, and according to Google Map, he was chasing the right bus to get to the diner.

As the bus drove him to the diner, Castiel mentally archived this current quest as one of the _weirdest_. He hooked up with a man at his regular bar, then apparently it was _all_ muscle memories from there, including the sex. Then in the morning, where it was usually one of the partners leaving quietly, this one went out silently and not returning, probably until later tonight. 

Then, of course, the roommate came into the picture. The roommate who was so beautiful and hot and made Castiel wondered whether he was also at the bar last night, and _why_ Castiel didn't see him? Even worse, Castiel still _couldn't_ remember what Benny looks like. From what his poor alcohol-filled memory could tell him, Benny was a tall and buff man who probably had a southern accent, and there was also _leather_. Did they do some BDSM play last night? 

It would be very concerning, considering that Castiel was _obviously_ drunk and couldn't consent. 

And there was Dean. 

There were no rules about sleeping with the roommate of your ex-one night stand, right? Could Castiel meet Dean again? Would Castiel meet Dean again?

He almost missed his stop; luckily, there was someone who also stopped where he intended to. When he entered, Castiel saw the woman he would be meeting with. His other half, who would always be there for him, no matter what. In return, Castiel would also be on her side and protecting her whenever she needed him.

She was tall and had the perfect body shape. Her brunette hair flowed down flawlessly. She wore a black long sleeve top with a wide v-neck that showed off one of her shoulders and most of her chest. Also a perfect combo of dark denim and knee-high suede boots that made her even more effortlessly sexy.

"Well, hello, walk of shame," her cheerful voice greeted Castiel, who laughed and embraced her in a hug.

"Good morning to you too, sister mine."


	2. A Pancake and A Cheese Burger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the weird morning after, Castiel met up with his sister, Abaddon, who was also on her share of post one night stand morning. They had a nice breakfast over the stories related to their adventure the previous night.

“So, who was the poor man whose bed you stained last night?”

Castiel pulled himself away from the hug, “Oh, really? This comes from _you,_ who I assume is still in last night’s clothes with all that bed hair?” he then claimed a seat across the beautiful woman. “And please, could you not make it sound weirder than it already is?” 

“Was it _that_ bad?” there was almost a tone of sympathy in her voice, although she was certain Castiel would know better that it will be temporary. 

The question made Castiel frown. He had expected his twin sister, Abaddon, would ask about his nightly adventure whenever they meet up on a Saturday or Sunday morning. But, now that he had to rerun his memory for the _umpteenth_ time to whatever happened last night, it grew weirder for him. Although, there was a hint of pleasantness now.

“It wasn’t _bad_ , per se, for the sex. I think. But, the morning after was kinda unusual?” when the bright-eyed woman in front of him looked interested, Castiel took off his jacket and continued his story. “So, you know when you brought someone home, they tend to leave early in the morning even when you’re awake, yeah? This one did the same, at his own home. I was staying at his place, so he just went out somewhere and didn’t return until I left to see you.”

Abaddon’s eyes widened, and she let out a bark of laughter, “You kidding? So, you just left the house?”

“What should I do? I don’t want to wait for him to return after leaving me — _naked_ , mind you — in his room, without saying anything, not even a note,” Castiel shrugged.

“Oh my God, Cassie. _Ew!_ I don’t need that much detail of you!” Abaddon threw a ball of tissue to Castiel’s face, who responded with a laugh. “Dude, that was really weird that he did that. Why didn’t you just take him to your place?”

Castiel inhaled a deep breath before answering, “That, sister mine, is another story.”

Once again, Abaddon released a loud laugh, this time she even threw her head back. “Holy fuck, Cassie! Whatever happened to you last night? How _many_ men did you sleep with?”

Unfortunately for Castiel, just after Abaddon threw that question to him, a waitress came to their table for their orders. Obviously, the poor middle-aged lady heard the semi-announcement from the stunning woman sitting in the booth. It could be seen in her sour expression as she looked _menacingly_ to both Castiel and Abaddon’s direction.

“Order?” the waitress asked dryly.

Castiel reached for the menu book that was on the table, “Uh, not yet. Sorry. Mind giving us a few more minutes?”

“I’ll be back,” the lady turned on her heels and headed to another booth. She clearly missed out the two grown-up children who were now giggling to their menu book.

“Maybe don’t shout so loud that I sleep with many men? And while at a _family place?_ ” Castiel giggled to his sister, who copied him. 

“Okay, I’m sorry, that was my fault,” Abaddon nodded solemnly to her big brother, and flipped the menu. “Well, continue, please.”

Without lifting his face from the pictures of food in front of him, and suddenly having a craving for pancakes, Castiel proceeded his story. “I went out with Charlie and our dear cousin, Balthazar, last night. So, as expected, we drank too much. The last thing I remember was dancing with Balthazar, and someone approached me. _Obviously_ , we kissed, then it was all patched memories from there. When I woke up, I was in the house I told you before. I completely didn’t remember _who_ that man actually was, or was the man I kissed was the _same_ person as the one I slept with.”

Castiel almost laughed when he saw his younger sister frozen on her seat. Her arms were stretched on the table between them, and a shocked expression was shown on her face. He let out an evil chuckle, “You can say something, you know. As long as it’s PG-13.”

“How-how? _How_ did that happen?” Abaddon finally reacted, her face went from shocked to concern in the counts of milliseconds, “No, seriously, Cassie, was it safe? I mean you were blacked out and all, he could do anything to you!”

“Yeah, yeah, I had checked myself in the mirror. There were no signs of violence whatsoever. I think this man was just post-one night stand _normal_ , I guess?” Castiel closed the menu book and put it aside. “My best bet was he didn’t think it through when he took me to his place. Unfortunately enough, I woke up later than him. But, fortunately for me, I met his oh-so fucking _gorgeous_ roommate. Whom I was quite sure if it wasn’t weird, or I don’t love my sister _that_ much, I probably would stay longer.”

“Aww, I’m flattered, Cassie,” Abaddon replied sarcastically with a scoff.

“So, ready to order now?” the waitress lady who came by to their booth returned.

“Oh, yes,” this time Castiel was ready with his most charming look. He smiled sweetly to her, and there was a tick of pride when he saw the lady’s face softened to a smile. “Can I have the standard pancake, please, with extra butter?”

“Sure, hon.”

“Thank you, and I also would like regular orange juice. Thanks very much,” he looked to the name tag, “Lily.”

Her smile widened, mission accomplished for Castiel.

Abaddon apparently did the same, she softened her voice and smiled charmingly to Lily, who took her order in a lighter mood than when she first came to their booth. 

Castiel was sometimes amazed that many people wouldn’t take him and Abaddon as twins when they first saw them. Sure, they were on different genders, but they both shared many physical characteristics. Both twins had lush brown hair — although Castiel still had his natural hair colour, light brown, and Abaddon was more reddish-brown since she dyed it. Her natural hair colour was red, just like their mother, while Castiel took after their father. Another feature that they share was a pair of striking blue eyes, just like their father.

Being the youngest ones in the Shurley family, Castiel and Abaddon had brought cheekiness to the family since they were little. There was quite a gap between their age and their older siblings. The elder twins, Lucifer and Michael, were twelve years older than them. Then the “middle child”, Gabriel, probably was the only one who was close to them, since he was only four years older than the younger twins. 

Although, after he finished high school, Gabriel went to France to study pastries. It had been twenty-six years, and Castiel could count on both hands the number of times Gabriel went home, or Castiel and Abaddon flew to France to visit him. He missed his big brother, but he knew Gabriel was happy in Europe learning pastries and opening a business there with his friend. Maybe Castiel should revisit him one of these days.

If Castiel and Abbadon were cheeky, it was all thanks to Gabriel. He groomed his baby siblings so they knew that they _could_ use their charm and adorableness to get what they want. From an early age, Castiel learnt that his big blue eyes were a useful weapon of their own, and Abaddon could make head turns just by showing her smile.

Growing up, both of the twins realised the effect they could give to their peers, socially and _sexually_. Of course, this would later lead them to discover what almost all teenagers of their age were curious about, sexualities. High school was the time for them to explore and try, then when they entered uni, it was all hells break loose.

They went to different campuses, as Castiel studied Ancient Languages and Abaddon went to learn Medical. The twins lived in an apartment located in an area that was right in the middle between their campuses. Their habit of sharing morning after stories came from the days they live in that apartment, as compensation for kicking the other out when one’s having someone over.

From his exploring days, Castiel found that he wasn’t one to fuss over his sexual partner’s gender or preferences. As long as they both consented, then he’d go for it. Of course, he has a higher selection in men, but it wouldn’t stop him from agreeing for an offer from others. Meanwhile, Abaddon loved to get attention and pleasure only from men.

Their adventures during college days were also the reason why both Castiel and Abbadon knew that they couldn’t live under their father’s roof anymore. Moreover, to Castiel. Since he knew that his father was quite an explorer in his youth; however, after he got married, he declared that he wouldn’t accept if any of his children were queer. Something that Lucifer picked up, and he proudly announced it, even though Michael and their mother disagreed with him.

It probably was the Scottish blood of their mother’s, that she was more laidback than her husband. Castiel heard her telling his father that whoever their children love should _not_ be an issue for them, and they should support them no matter what. That was one of many moments where Castiel felt a deep respect for his mother. 

Their father’s statement became the main reason why the twins preferred to put their middle name on their everyday needs. They were mostly known as Castiel Novak and Abaddon Sands, which can be quite misleading to the fact that they were related, closely.

“Okay, I have told you my morning-after story. What about _you_? Anything exciting?” Castiel played with the salt and pepper shaker as he waited for Abaddon’s answer.

Abaddon sighed lazily before replying, “Just another mistake of pleasures.” She laughed when she saw her brother make a funny face as a response, “You know, one of those nights when you picked up someone, and it ended not as satisfying as you hoped. I mean, at least you had good sex — I assumed — from whoever you picked up last night. Mine was … _ugh!_ I honestly started to think that he was actually a college kid who happened to look way older for his age.”

This time it was Castiel’s turn to burst with laughter, “That was awful, even only from listening to it. However, I could share your sympathy on that, sister mine. One of _those_ nights,” Castiel said in a faux solemn voice that lasted less than five seconds before he finally laughed again.

“That makes your night didn’t sound _that_ bad, huh, Cassie?”

Castiel shrugged and waved his hand softly, “Well, it’s no competition, really. Come on, it’s only Saturday morning. You still have Saturday night _and_ Sunday to have more fun.”

Before she could answer, Abaddon noticed Castiel’s signal from the way he moved his eyes to the direction of Lily, who came to their table with their breakfast orders. With movements that were shaped by years of experience, she placed the pancake — just like Castiel ordered, with _extra_ butter — and orange juice in front of Castiel. Then the meal set of a cheese burger, chips, and orange juice in front of Abaddon.

Both of them gave Lily their best smile, that they would give to a loving aunt, while saying thank you, that earned a sweet smile in return from the waitress lady.

Somehow it brought warmth to the twins’ chest. 

While she picked some of the chips to eat, Abaddon continued her share of the story. “Have you ever thought of settling down, Cassie?”

That was a question that Castiel would _never_ expect to come from his sister, the partner in crime. He even abruptly stopped cutting his pancake. “You wanted to settle down? Could you say _that_ again, please? _Slowly_ this time.”

“Oh, thank you for being so _supportive_ , brother mine,” this time it was Abaddon’s turn to do the eye-roll before chuckling. “It was just out of curiosity, really. No, I haven’t met anyone, so stop giving me that look, thank you very much. Sometimes I just wonder what would happen if someday I met someone I'm comfortable with, and decided to settle down. Having to spend my days with only _one_ person or have to go through _all_ the process of getting to know each other and everything? That sounds exhausting.”

Castiel almost choked on his pancake, but then he drank his orange juice. “Look, if you want to get committed to one particular person, then go ahead. I won’t stop you, as long as you know you’re definitely happy with him. This man should also respect you for who you are, and obviously won’t be intimidated by what you do.”

Quite different with Castiel, who took the path of a Linguist that related to historical and creative work, Abaddon studied Medical for the science of it. She had taken her undergraduate studies also four years of research in Medical School. Abaddon had worked at the local hospital for a few years before she decided that she wanted to take Master Studies in Nutrition and Dietetics. That was last year, and she was currently on her second year.

To both of the twins’ annoyance, many men had the absurd fantasy of approaching Abaddon, but once they knew that she was in her second year of Masters Study, and it was Medical, these men would slowly disappear. The silver lining for Abaddon was she could still be free to roam around and find a man who could satisfy her in bed, without having to be bothered with commitments. 

Besides of her study, of course.

“Yeah, sounded like a major work, innit?” Abaddon finally answered after a few moments of silence on the table, and then she took another bite of her cheeseburger.

“I know,” Castiel replied. “Might probably be harder for me, with Dad and his antics.”

Abaddon showed her thoughtful expression once again, “Yeah, sorry about that. I still couldn’t understand why Dad was like _that_. It’s not like you broke any law or anything, and he wasn’t exactly straight as well back then.”

Castiel only replied with a shrug, since he really couldn’t understand his father, and eventually grew tired of trying.

“So, will you ever tell Mum and Dad?”

“I still don’t know honestly,” Castiel sighed, then he ran his finger on the lips of his glass. “I mean, I'd love to tell Mum. I think, I _hope,_ she would be happy finding out that I'm more comfortable and happier with myself now, you know? But, yeah, probably not so much for Dad. We’ll see.”

As she saw her big brother looked vulnerable, Abaddon reached out her hand to take Castiel’s. “Hey, you know I’ll be there for you no matter what, right? Me and Gabriel will _always_ support you. And, maybe we can talk rationally to Michael as well.”

Castiel smiled as he heard his sister’s words, “Thanks, Abbie.”

They both then continued eating their breakfast in silence, a comfortable silence. Castiel took this moment to look around the place. He just remembered that he didn’t get to check out the area when he arrived since they both were instantly involved in an absurd conversation about their night adventures. 

The diner started to get populated since it was almost the peak of breakfast time. There were sounds of chatter from every corner of the place, although it was still on a considerate amount of volume. It wasn’t too loud, yet you still could catch some of the ongoing conversations if you paid enough attention. The sweet smell of pastry started to fill the air. It was guaranteed to make anyone who stepped in to be hungry and craved for something warm and savoury to begin their day. 

Tables and booths were mostly filled, and the staff were busy going back and forth, taking orders from the patrons and delivering their food. Castiel had been to diners in the morning after spending a night at someone else’s place, and he had to say, he immensely loved the atmosphere of a restaurant in the morning. Everyone was still in their best mood, and the smell of food that came from the kitchen was perfect for stimulating hunger. Also, the food would be fresher than when you arrived later.

Castiel looked around. He noticed small groups of families in every other table. Some in their casual wear and some seemed ready for their weekend getaway at the mountains or the beach. Some booths were occupied with the kinds like himself and Abaddon — who spent the night nowhere near home and stopped by here to have breakfast before going home. 

He turned his attention to the direction of the cashier, which was filled with laughter from the two waitresses working together fluidly, making coffees and drinks for their patrons. Among their high pitched laughs, there were also masculine ones. Two or three men were enjoying their quick breakfast and conversation with the staff before they went to their weekend shift at work.

A piercing scream made Castiel winced, and he quickly searched for the source. It was from the table with a family. Father and mother were busy with their three children. The elder one was fighting and screeching over something with the younger ones. The toddler in the mother’s arm started to cry from the noises its siblings made. 

It was so _frustrating_ to watch.

“I don’t know about you, sister mine, but I don’t think you’re ready for _that_. Maybe for a long time,” Castiel looked at his sister smugly. “Well, neither of us in that matter.”

Abaddon chuckled at Castiel’s note, “You’re right. Oh God, I’m sorry, but if you’re not ready to have _that_ amount of children, maybe don’t have _that_ many?” she groaned softly.

“The father walks out with the baby, and currently the mother is shouting at the other two,” Castiel didn’t even bother to lower his voice, especially since the mother’s voice could be heard throughout the diner. 

“Oh, thank God, they’re shutting up,” he announced a little _too_ loud since the mother craned her neck in his direction now. Castiel responded by raising his glass of orange juice to her.

“Cassie, you’ve got the name of an angel, but I swear you can be a little bit satanic sometimes,” Abaddon laughed, followed by her brother. “By the way, don’t forget we’re having Dad’s birthday party next week. Don’t let me go there all by myself, Cassie.”

Castiel lifted one of his fingers as he finished his orange juice, something he picked up from watching too much _Archer_. Also, something that he knew would annoy his sister or anyone who talked to him and was on the receiving end of that finger, “I’ll go, Abbie, don’t worry. But it’s more for Mum. Oh, God, Lucifer’s going to be there, isn’t he?”

The girl laughed at Castiel’s frustration. She knew how much Castiel hated his obnoxious big brother. 

“Anyway, what’s your plan for today?” Castiel pushed the empty pancake plate to the middle of the table. “Looking for another conquest?”

“I think so,” Abaddon replied lightly, “There are people from my class who are planning a pub crawl for tonight, so might pick someone or two from there. We’ll see. What about you? Working?”

“Yeah,” Castiel smiled and leant back on the cushion, “maybe if I’m tired or bored of my work, and Charlie’s unavailable, I might call you and join you.”

Abaddon sucked through her teeth, “You know, Cassie, not that I don’t love you, but I’d prefer that you _don’t_. No, _nothing_ to do with any men,” she raised her hands before Castiel could say anything, “it’s a girls night out. You’re not exactly bad looking with your blue eyes, dishevelled hair, and your devil may care style if you know what I mean?”

Castiel laughed at the reply, “I feel like we’re back in high school. Anyway, _all_ of those that you said before, have you looked at yourself in the mirror recently? Those are also _exactly_ you. We’re _twins_!”

His claims made Abaddon laugh out loud that she shed some tears. “Fuck you, Castiel, you know that.”

“Please don’t. That’s _incest_ , and I’m into men.”


	3. Romeo, Misha, and Mick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Working on Saturday night wasn't something new for Castiel. He enjoyed the quiet campus library, his colourful teammates, also ... the new librarian. Although it was all on different kinds of enjoying.

The sound of people arguing brought Castiel to his consciousness, and it seemed like he had fallen asleep while watching _Good Omens_ on Prime Videos. It was one of his favourite shows that he could rewatch it again and again, without having to get bored. That Crowley caught his eyes, with the flaming red hair and fabulous giant car. Castiel would love to fantasise being fucked by Crowley at the backseat of that car. Or on the hood, he wasn’t fussed.

Castiel woke up from his sleep for the second time that day, and this time he smiled when he saw the familiar ceilings above him. Then as he looked around, he also recognised the room he was in and everything that was in there. From the wardrobe across his bed, the television that somehow mounted on the right side of the bed — from the previous flat owner, to the window that showed the street he lived in from the third floor. 

Then, of course, he recognised the comforting weight on his right that was practically half on top of him.

“You know that you’re heavy, right?” he asked without even bothering to turn his head and smiled when he received a soft growl as an answer. “Yeah, I love you too, baby,” he craned his neck to place a gentle kiss on top of a furry head that belongs to a grey Siberian Husky. “Ooh, I should have taken you out for a walk today, yeah? I’m so sorry, Romeo love, I forgot,” Castiel reached out to bring the dog closer to him, then he nuzzled his face to the pup’s neck.

_Meow!_

The soft mew came with a slight dip on the foot of the bed, then small pressures followed to Castiel’s thigh and stomach, before stopping on his chest and soft vibrating purred accompanied. 

“Of course you’re here as well, Misha,” Castiel rubbed the jet black head of the feline, whose purr just became louder and there were some sharp sensations on Castiel’s chest. “Ow, watch those claws, will you?”

The fat black cat only looked at Castiel for a few moments before blinked lazily and head-butted Castiel’s hand, a sign for him to keep going with the rub.

“You spoilt brat,” Castiel said lovingly.

He stayed in that position for some more moments, before he turned his head to the digital clock on the bedside table. There was a smile on his face when he found out that he could have another hour to sleep before he had to get ready for work. Of course, going back to sleep was only one option that Castiel could do for the one hour time; there were other options that he could do and _also_ be useful for him and society. But, Castiel decided that sleeping would be the best one, especially with his fur babies snuggling up next to him. So, he had to turn the air con on in his room and set the time for an hour. As well as the alarm on his phone.

It was quite tricky to do all that without creating many movements, so Misha the black cat could still sleep peacefully on his chest, and Romeo, the Siberian Husky, could snuggle next to him.

After he set his alarm, Castiel closed his eyes again and returned to slumber.

And, as expected, he overslept. Now he only had fifteen minutes to get to his workplace.

Castiel worked at one of the most popular universities in the city as a consultant translator. He majored in Ancient Language Studies back at uni, and one of the languages that he was fond of and proudly fluent of was Enochian. The fact that he was one of the _few_ scholars in the subject had landed him many offers in translating tablets and documents from museums and other cultural foundations. 

It was convenient for Castiel since he could earn money, _good_ money, from doing something that he liked. Moreover, he didn’t have to be committed to official work hours, since most of his works can be done remotely, or for some projects — like the one he was currently working on — on _odd_ hours. 

His adventures with languages didn’t stop when he received his Masters in Ancient Language Studies. Since his father seemed to have closed his eyes on educational expenses for his children, Castiel took Russian for another three years afterwards. Just from the sole reason that his father didn’t know he had graduated, and still sending him the money for tuition. His mother knew, however, and she supported Castiel in this.

It had been three months since Castiel started working on this particular project with the university. He enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere of doing the project with the team, along with the pay. The students and professors whom he worked with were friendly, helpful, and adorable. Along the way, he befriended one of the Masters’ students in the team, Charlie Bradbury, a video game and pop culture geek who enjoyed life and also a fantastic wing-woman for Castiel. Probably as expected with her interest, Charlie took Latin and German for her undergraduates, and now she currently studied Language Studies for her Masters. 

“Hey, there you are, _finally!_ ” 

A girl with flaming red hair greeted Castiel in a whispered voice as he arrived at the library. The other students who would be working as well that night waved excitedly to the blue-eyed man, who returned it with a smile. 

They usually booked the discussion area in the library for their work, this area was located on the corner of each floor and supervised by one librarian that would help them whenever they needed something and also look after what they were doing. Since it was after seven, not many students would go to the library for any matter, especially on a Saturday night. So, the campus thought it would be wise to have someone standing by if there was anyone about to do something that would be frowned upon by campus.

What he noticed, but decided to play coy about it, was the fact that probably most of his younger teammates were smitten to Castiel. He managed to bring good looks to the table and charmed them. Well, besides Charlie, of course, and not in _that_ way. Even so, Castiel knew that he had to keep it professional with his co-workers. 

Other students outside the project, on the other hand, was _another_ question. There were times where Castiel would catch the eyes of students in the library, and they ended up having a quickie. Sometimes when Castiel was feeling generous, he’d take them to his place. Or go to theirs.

“Hello, Charlie. I overslept, sorry,” Castiel gave his friend an apologetic look before walking to the empty seat next to Charlie’s, as usual. He took out his laptop and put it on the table to turned it on, Castiel continued to search for his notebook inside his sling bag. While he was logging in to his laptop, Castiel could feel a look of curiosity coming from Charlie. “No, it got _nothing_ to do with last night, I assure you,” he whispered, but clear enough for Charlie to hear him.

“Well, that was _unexpected_ ,” Charlie replied as she unlocked his tablet, and started typing on the attachable keyboard.

Castiel chuckled at the response, and then he turned to the rest of the team, who were all gathered on one laptop and suppressed their laughter at whatever it is they’re watching. “Hey, guys, sorry to interrupt, where are we with these tablets?”

One of the students, Jack Klein, turned his attention from what he was watching to Castiel, “I thought the tablets were with you? The photos?”

The answer caught Castiel off guard, and he squinted his eyes while trying to remember if there was any discussion that would lead to this information. Then it hit him, “Oh shit, I completely forgot! Sorry, Jack, you were right. Naomi sent it to me yesterday, and she said she wouldn’t be here tonight since she has a family thing. I really forgot to share it with you guys. My fault.”

“Don’t worry, Cas, we’re ahead of our deadline, so even if we only have half of today’s work done, we’re still safe,” another student, Kaia Nieves, smiled at him and returned to her seat next to Jack on the large round table. She opened her laptop and awakened it from Sleep mode, before leaning towards Jack, “Hey, what’s the wi-fi password here?”

Castiel then worked on his laptop to upload the files that their supervisor had sent to him, as the senior translator, right before he went out for drinks. Now he remembered why he couldn’t recall it. While waiting for the uploading to finish, Castiel noticed that his team had returned to whatever they were watching before. 

“What are you guys watching there?”

It was another team member, Kevin, who replied, “Jack found a trailer on a really frightening Indonesian film, do you wanna see it as well?”

“Um, maybe not,” he chuckled, “thank you, though.”

Right after he replied to Kevin, Castiel noticed that his Messenger was blinking.

**So, was last night that good?**

Charlie. _Of course_ she’d asked about what happened after the club. When it comes to Castiel’s love love, he could swear that it was Charlie who should be Abaddon’s twin, they both love to interrogate Castiel. He knew they were playful in the way siblings would do, because he also did the same to them in return. He smiled and typed the reply.

 **I won’t say it was, but somehow it wasn’t  
as well. ** **  
****I’ll tell you after this. It’s quite an  
unusual experience. **

He swore he just clicked Send to his message, but a reply from Charlie had already arrived. Castiel always wondered how Charlie typed _that_ fast.

**Cool. I’m craving the burger and  
milkshake from the diner behind  
campus. Let’s go there, okay?**

After reading the message, and gave up wondering how Charlie could type that much in such a short time, Castiel turned to Charlie and quietly gave her a thumb up as a reply. When he turned his head to his laptop again to check on the uploading files, he smiled as he saw that they had all moved to his cloud storage. “Guys, I’ve finished uploading the files, and now I’m sending the link to you, so we can start working.”

Being a freelancer, working on weekends was an exciting matter for Castiel, such as what he was doing tonight. Gathered up with some friends that he would consider unexpected, spent a good time working and laughed with them (while earning a sharp look from the librarian), learnt anything interesting that sometimes could be a conversation started when he was about to pick up someone from the bar. He could even sharpen the skill that he had since graduating from uni. Some nights he _might_ get lucky as well.

A short, but collective, shriek from his young friends caught the attention of the librarian. Surely enough, they received a “shush” for the fourth time. This time, Castiel turned his head to see the librarian in duty, and right after, a smile was shown on his face. 

From the days and nights he spent working in this library, Castiel could tell that the person behind the desk was a stranger to his eyes. A man in a white shirt and looked relatively young, probably a senior student or an intern. He had rumpled dark hair, athletic body, delicious facial hair, and friendly smile. He was charming and his rugged look was definitely nice to the eyes, yet there was an air of command around him. Which can be quite interesting.

**Is he new?**

The message from Castiel made Charlie turn her head slowly to the direction of the librarian’s table for a few seconds, and then there were sounds of keyboard clicking from Charlie’s direction.

 **Huh. Probably. Just noticed him.** **  
****Are you planning to do something with  
him?**

Castiel smiled as he read the message, then typed his reply.

**We’ll see.**

He threw another look to the librarian, and this time the man behind the desk noticed Castiel. And he smiled _back_. That was all Castiel needed to know that he had the green light to make a move for the librarian and get him cornered somewhere for some fleeting pleasures. But, it was _not_ the time; he had to keep his professionalism among his team members. After all, they looked up to him as their group head and he shouldn’t betray the responsibility that was given to him. Based on his experience so far, he would be in this library for another _three_ hours anyway. As well as the sexy librarian.

Castiel put aside the dirty though in his mind, and continued to work on the translations with his team. Also, Charlie had kicked his legs under the table to remind him that they still had some work to do. 

The small team worked significantly throughout the next two hours. It always made Castiel proud how this small team was so passionate about the project even though they were young, and might be easily distracted with things that they found while researching. 

Such as now, where they seemed to have reached the point of exhaustion for this Saturday night. Slowly they had their attention strayed from the work to anything that they feel was more interesting to discuss. It didn’t take long before they started to argue in a clash of languages, and Castiel could only sit there and watch them back and forth as if they were at a tennis match.

“Excuse me.”

The heated multilingual conversation stopped abruptly, when a voice with a thick Irish accent, and spoke in plain English, came among them. The whole table turned their heads in unison to whoever came to their table and used a common language that they have known very well. It was a dark-haired man in a white shirt and sharp dark blue pants. His bright hazel eyes twinkled cheekily - an unmistakable Irish charm - and the smile on his face was friendly, although if you squinted there was a hint of hope there.

The librarian.

“I, uh, I just got a call from the security that he might need my help to do a thingy with the electricity for the library. And, uh, I’m new here, so I’m wondering if any of you guys, by any chance, can help me with?”

Right at the last word of his question, the man turned his face to Castiel. 

This was it. The _invitation_.

Castiel gave his best smile to the man who was standing and towered behind his chair. “Well, I’m the oldest one here, so I guess yeah, I can go with you,” he then turned to Charlie. “Mind holding down the fort while I help him for a bit?”

The red-haired girl gave him a knowing look, “Like I _could_ say no?”

“Thanks, Charlie. I’ll be right back, guys,” Castiel rose from his seat and followed the librarian.

To the janitor closet.

“That was _not_ suspicious at all,” Castiel grunted as his back was being pushed to the wall and a pair of soft lips crashed to his. The kiss was rough and wanton, and he loved it. Castiel hissed when the librarian ran his tongue on his neck. “Oh, fuck, yes.”

The foul language that came from Castiel's mouth made the librarian even more passionate in kissing him, and he also had his hands pawed at the man who was pinned, in search of a way to undid Castiel’s pants. After a few seconds, he finally managed to unzip the taller man’s pants and slid his hand in. “Bloody hell, man, you’re _fucking_ hung!”

If he had to be honest, those weren’t foreign words to Castiel’s ears. Still, there was a flash of pride in his chest every time he heard his sexual partner complimented his size. He chuckled darkly before placing both of his hands on the side of the librarian’s face, brushed his lips to the other man’s teasefully, and muttered, “I _also_ tasted delicious,” then he leered his eyes down to the librarian’s name tag, “Mick.” 

Mick received Castiel’s not-so-subtle invitation well, on the next second he was on his knees and pulled the other man’s pants lower, and the smile on his face got wider as he saw Castiel’s cock sprung free. But Mick didn’t service him immediately. Just like the man he lured to this janitor closet, he teased. 

Mick started by kissing the lower part of Castiel’s stomach, and then he went to the hip bones, intentionally avoiding Castiel’s crotch. He ran his teeth softly on one of Castiel’s hip bones and made a soft bite on the skin, earning a moan that sent a tingling sensation to his spine. He repeated the gesture to the other hip bone, while his hand was grabbing Castiel’s cock and started pumping slowly. Mick maintained eye contact with Castiel’s blue orbs that had eclipsed with the blown pupils. After several strokes that made Castiel’s breaths come in short pants, Mick continued his teasing by running the tip of his tongue on the head of Castiel’s cock. This time the sound that came to his ear was a louder moan that made his dick hardened.

Mick lingered to give kitten licks to Castiel’s head before slowly he sheathed the hard cock in front of him with the warmth of his mouth. 

For the next few minutes, Castiel had to strain himself from screaming, because not only did Mick have a _very_ talented mouth, he also played _well_ with his tongue. There was a moment where Castiel had to bite his fist due to the arousal Mick gave him by pulling his mouth from the base of his cock to the tip in a slow torturous pace. Followed by running his tongue circling the head of Castiel’s penis, and gave another tease with the flat area of his tongue. It felt like he had no time to process what was given to his dick, and Mick had already bobbed his head again. The next moment Mick hollowed his cheeks to squeeze Castiel’s dick, before slowly running the tip of his tongue under the shaft.

Castiel groaned and landed his hands on Mick’s head, then started to fuck the Irish man’s mouth. He let out a gasp of surprise when Mick grabbed his ass tightly, then with the same torturous pace as before the librarian pulled himself off Castiel’s dick while swirling his tongue all along the thick shaft. Castiel’s groan was shut when Mick suddenly attacked his lips, transferring the taste of precum into his mouth.

“Fuck, you’re filthy,” Castiel licked Mick’s lips.

“I am,” this time the smug smile showed on Mick’s face, and then he cocked his head to the direction of a small desk behind him. “That desk, _now._ ” 

Castiel could feel the hairs on the back of his neck rise when he heard Mick’s sensuous whisper that was thick with an Irish accent. He grinned as he walked past Mick, then turned around to face him while walking backwards, with the belt dangled from his pants, until the back of his legs hit the desk. He placed his hands on the table and licked his lips as he saw Mick take his fat penis out from his pants while moving forward. 

Once again, Castiel had his lips devoured by the Irish man, as he had his t-shirt stripped off his torso. He threw his head back to give more access to Mick, who made a long stripe of lick from Castiel’s chest to neck, and ended it with a sharp suck on the pulse point. 

“Turn around,” Mick purred on Castiel’s ear while he took out the sachet lubricant from his pocket. As he saw his bottom turned around and flaunted his gorgeous globes, Mick landed a soft slap on each cheek. He then poured a generous amount of lube into his hand, and then the rest went to Castiel’s hole. While he prepared Castiel with his fingers, Mish placed kisses on the other man’s back, all along the spine up to the neck. He then stopped on the shoulder blades before biting the spot where Castiel’s shoulder met the neck. Again, he managed to make Castiel release a filthy moan from his mouth.

“Mick, fuck me. _Now!_ ” Castiel knew the effect of his deep voice to his sex partners, and he liked it. After he felt two more playful slaps on his ass, Castiel heard the sound of a condom pack being opened and not long after, Mick entered him. As the Irish man paused and let him get accustomed with the size that had entered him, Castiel felt Mick’s hand find his nipples and started teasing them. It didn’t take long for Castiel to think that the stimulation had done too much to him. He pushed his ass backwards to Mick as a sign for Mick to start moving. 

So he did. Mick pounded Castiel on that desk.

As he was being fucked by the man he just saw two hours or so ago, Castiel’s mind flew to what happened this morning. When he met a boyish man with playful green eyes and a friendly smile, a face with freckles, messy brown hair with some strays on the forehead. His built and muscular body, even the t-shirt that he wore couldn’t disguise it.

Castiel reached down and started to stroke his cock. He imagined if it was Dean who was pounding him. He wouldn’t have it this way; he would want to face Dean. Castiel would want to see the look on Dean’s face as they do it, to hear the sounds he would make, to touch his face. How Dean would manhandle Castiel down as he fucks him harder. Castiel imagined Dean marked his neck and chest while he fucked him. Then Dean would pull out right before he came, and stripped the condom off before giving his penis several strokes while he aimed Castiel’s chest and mouth, and-

_Oh, fuck._

He came. 

Castiel fucked his hand as he rode the orgasm wave until he could feel his knees were weak. Apparently, this excited Mick that he started pounding Castiel more, and started to lose his rhythm after some moments, then he also reached his climax.

The room was silent for a while, only their short breaths and pants that could be heard, racing one and another. A wince from Castiel came when Mick pulled out slowly. 

“Fuck, that was good,” Mick panted and stripped the condom off his softened dick. 

“Sure. You don’t happen to have a tissue or anything, do you?” Castiel turned around and showed his hand that was covered in cum. He’d be damned if he touched his clothes while his hand was like this.

Mick chuckled and then pointed to the shelf next to the desk, “There should be a roll of toilet paper there. You can use it for cleaning up.”

“Fantastic,” Castiel walked with short steps since he still had his pants down to his thigh. Luckily, it wasn’t that hard to spot the toilet paper. Although he found something even better, a kitchen towel, that was curious enough was available here. But, this curious thing helped Castiel tonight so that he won’t question it. “You want?”

“Oh, great. Thanks, man,” Mick received the roll from Castiel’s hand.

After Castiel cleaned up his hand and about to pull his pants up, he felt Mick was entering his personal space. Sure enough, Mick was now standing only inches from him. The man with hazel eyes was now running his fingers on Castiel’s collar bone, before dragging them to his chest and started playing with Castiel’s dusky nipples. 

“Fuck, you’re so sexy,” that was all Mick said before he, once again, attacked Castiel’s lips, then slithered down his kisses to the neck and each of Castiel’s nipples. Mick’s tongue was all over Castiel’s chest as he pushed the man down to the desk tenderly. He rolled his tongue on each nipple, and he sucked them, he even gave them soft bites. Mick even did more than those to the point that Castiel was hard again. 

“That’s on you,” Castiel gasped and warned Mick.

“Oh, fuck yeah,” once again that night, Mick was on his knees and sucked Castiel’s dick.

_Well, two orgasms in less than an hour. Not bad._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Castiel couldn't keep it in his pants. Oops.  
> I'm not a Castiel/Mick Davies shipper, but for this story, I just think that it might be fun to make Castiel and Mick Davies fool around. They did exchange numbers in the show a few seasons ago, right?
> 
> Hope you enjoy my story so far, because there might be quite a gap before the next chapter update.  
> That is if this one didn't end up as tragically-abandoned as the other two. 
> 
> Oh, if you haven't read my *other* fanfics, feel free to check it out! ^^
> 
> Thanks very much, people!


	4. The One With The Look

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fuck-and-tell moment between Castiel and Charlie. Also a revelation from Charlie that Castiel might not realise yet.

“You _fucked_ the librarian?”

He knew that this question would come from one Charlene Bradbury right the moment they found a table at the diner she was looking forward to visiting. There was also a probability she had thought of asking Castiel this the second he decided to leave the library with Mick. All the same, Castiel still couldn’t help himself to tease Charlie a little bit, just like what he usually does to Abaddon. So, instead of giving her the direct answer, Castiel only sat there in silence and pulled his strawberry milkshake closer to him, without breaking eye contact with Charlie, and slurped at the drink through the straw. 

When he saw the inner ends of Charlie’s eyebrows dove and united even lower on her forehead, Castiel finally replied, “I need a break?”

Charlie’s facial expression scrunched even more when she heard Castiel’s reply, “You couldn’t come up with something better, could you? Some people go for a walk or buy snacks for breaks. You just have to go and _fuck_ the librarian. _Don’t_ give out that look to me, Novak. It won’t work no matter how _beautiful_ your eyes are!” 

Castiel laughed at his friend’s comment, and then he leaned forward to take some chips from the small bucket on the table.

“So how many people have you fucked in the last 24 hours?” Charlie threw another question.

“Two then. Although I still couldn’t place the one from the club. Do you remember the man I left with? What did he look like?” Castiel asked as he checked the incoming message on his phone, a spam text.

Charlie shook her head softly, “I only remember you went dancing with Balthazar. Then you were missing, and suddenly you popped out of nowhere and told me that you’re leaving with _‘some guy’._ Didn’t get a chance to look at him.”

“Well, just not his luck then,” Castiel smiled smugly to Charlie.

“So, what happened, really? You don’t remember the dude _at all?_ ” 

“No. I only remember being drunk, then I found someone, I kissed him, and the next thing I know I woke up in an empty bedroom,” he took a sip from his milkshake. “And if I have to be honest, I don’t remember if the person I slept with and the one I kissed at the bar was the same person.”

Charlie paused for two seconds before her laughter exploded; it took her a while to realise that some heads turned to their booth’s direction. She stopped and cleared her throat before continuing to interrogate her friend, “Dude, _seriously?_ As hilarious as it was, that’s really dangerous. What if he was planning to _rape_ you?”

“Yeah, I guess I was lucky that nothing bad happened to me. I checked in the morning; there were no bruises or anything. But then, something’s more interesting came in the morning after.”

“He’s married?” 

“What? No. His roommate was hot!”

The quick answer from Castiel made Charlie stop her munching and, probably for the third time that night, she had a mixture of shocked and disbelief on her face. When she had that expression, there was a high probability that she would cuss at Castiel. “What the fuck, Cas? You said you only fucked _two_ men?”

Castiel raised his hands in frustration that was mixed with confusion, “I’m _not_ finished! And what’s with the tone of slut-judging me?”

Beyond his surprise, Charlie didn’t answer; she only gave him a knowing look that was almost intimidating.

“Okay, don’t answer that, _please_. Anyway, I woke up and found this roommate in the living room, watching _Scooby-Doo_. We had a quick chat, and he even gave me a glass of water and an Aspirin, then offered me breakfast. That was odd, right?” Castiel took another scoop of the bucket chips before he continued his story. “I mean, it’s like he’s doing this every other weekend to his roommate’s one night stand partners.”

The story seemed to caught Charlie’s attention, she moved forward and placed her elbows on the table, “That _is_ unusual. I mean, even with your roommate’s boyfriend or girlfriend, it’s just so weird to offer them hangover remedies or breakfast on the first meet, yeah?”

“ _Exactly!_ I mean, conversing with him was really nice and all, flowing and relaxed. It just seemed bizarre,” Castiel played with the dew on his milkshake glass. 

“What are the chances you’re gonna hook up with this roommate again? Do you know his name?” Charlie started to show a suspicious smile.

“Oh, this one I _do_ . Dean. He introduced himself to me as if it was something he did every day,” Castiel scoffed when he saw Charlie gave him a sceptical look. “What’s also weird, he looked so gorgeous being just awakened on a Saturday morning. He has these _beautiful_ green eyes that look playful _and_ seductive at the same time. His face has freckles all over, and his hair was this floppy haircut that was like it was from the ’90s. It was mad!” Castiel chuckled as he saw the smile on Charlie’s face grow wider. “What? What is that smile?”

“You’re _smitten_ !” Charlie claimed cheerfully. “I’ve _never_ seen you talk about someone like this, let alone a man! Seriously, Cas!”

The claim took Castiel by surprise that he couldn’t even respond coherently to Charlie. All he could do was opening and closing his mouth in protest, and probably resembling a fish who was thrown out of water. It took him another three seconds to finally be able to respond, “I was only _describing_ him to you, what makes you draw that _conclusion_?”

“Dude, I’m a girl, I _know_ the look of someone’s being smitten. And you have _the look_ , just now!” Charlie pointed a finger to Castiel's face and made a circle around it. The smile on her face grew wider when she knew that the man who sat opposite him was going to throw a disapproval note. Unfortunately, it was cut when a woman’s voice called before them, to Castiel’s name.

“Cassie!”

Or a shortened version of it.

The voice caught Castiel’s attention from the objection he was about to throw to Charlie. Instead, he was all lighted up and smiled widely, “Abbie, hey! What are you doing here?” he got up from his seat and gave a quick hug to his twin sister.

“The pub crawl I told you before, with my class?” Abaddon turned to her friends who were standing in a group behind her. As expected, they all stared dreamily at Castiel. “We made a pit stop here for a quick bite, before hopping off to the next bar. Charlie! How’re you, babe?”

The red-haired girl squealed when the other girl noticed her, and she followed Castiel to stand and embraced Abaddon in a hug, “Hey, Abbie, it’s been a while. I’m good, still working with your brother here. What about you?”

“Eh, same old. I hope he’s not giving you a hard time with … his _quests_ ,” Abaddon shrieked when Castiel pinched her waist right after she said that, earning a burst of laughter from Charlie. She was about to return the pinch to his big brother when she noticed that one of her friends called her. “Oh, I think we’re going now. Really nice to meet you, Charlie! Next time we meet, we’ll talk about _his_ quests, yeah? Bye, brother mine, I’ll call you.”

“Take care, sister mine,” Castiel kissed the top of Abaddon’s head before he waved to her friends as they left the diner.

After Abaddon left, both Charlie and Castiel returned to their seats. While doing so, Charlie also called the waiter guy who happened to serve a table next to them. They made another order of a beer bucket and more chips. After saying thank you to, Charlie turned to Castiel. “By the way, your sister? _Her’s_ are the big blue eyes that would work on me.”

He knew that Charlie would say this, she had been playfully teasing Castiel how gorgeous Abaddon is, and she would love it if Castiel gives them a blessing to be lovers. Of course, Castiel couldn’t do that, since he knew Abaddon is straight, and Charlie understood it. She still threw a light joke here and there, and even Abaddon knew that Charlie has a crush on her. However, the three of them had an understanding that their friendship is way too precious than any love-related interferences.

“Well, if she was queer and she chose you, I will be a very happy man,” Castiel placed both of his hands on his chest, right where his heart is and gave Charlie a broad cheeky smile. “By the way, you both were the only people I would go fuck-and-tell to.” 

Charlie chuckles, “Aw, such an honour. Okay, continue. What about the librarian? You were lucky everyone didn’t actually notice that you were gone for a long time. They were playing this horror game from Indonesia, and it’s terrifying.”

“Oh, thank God I wasn’t there,” Castiel shot a deadpan response. “Well, he’s Irish and … he’s good. That was a fantastic quickie. _Two_ orgasms. What? _You asked!_ ”


	5. Don't You Forget About Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Castiel is enjoying me-time jogging at the pet park with his boys, Romeo and Misha. Then he met a surprise at the end of his run.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I made Castiel listen to Brit-rock bands.

_Tell me your troubles and doubts_

_Giving me everything inside and out and_

_Love’s strange so real in the dark_

_Think of the tender things that we were working on_

_Slow change may pull us apart_

_When the light gets into your heart, baby_

The seductive voice of Jim Kerr filled Castiel's ears, and he almost couldn't resist Simple Mind's Glaswegian charm to dance. Almost like the effect from that _other_ Glaswegian band with a historical Archduke for a name. Even though he was quite sure, if he danced while running, there was a high probability that he'd _tripped_ to the leashes in his hand and fell. So, it would be wise if he just continued to run.

The park where he ran was quite empty, just like Castiel liked it when he went for a jog on weekdays. Other perks from being a freelancer, he could do his hobbies on weekdays and avoid the crowd. Plus, since he forgot to take his dog for a walk last Saturday, Castiel decided to do it today. On a Tuesday. 

Just like most of the other days when he went for a run, Castiel took Misha as well. The miniature panther seemed to enjoy going for a walk with his husky big brother and his human. It might have something to do with the story of how Misha came to Castiel's path at this very park. 

It was a chilly and gloomy afternoon after the rain, and Castiel thought the weather was beautiful to go for a quick run. So, he took Romeo — the Siberian husky he adopted from a local pet shop the year before — and drove to this pet park. While he was running, Castiel heard a faint mew from one of the bushes, then he took Romeo to search the source. After around half an hour, they finally found it, a baby jet black kitten crying for his mother. 

Probably it was fate that made the little kitten mewed precisely at the time Castiel ran past him, even with Romeo on his feet. The gentle husky sniffed on the baby kitten and quickly laid down next to him as if protecting the poor creature. That was the time Castiel _knew_ he had to bring him home.

With the help of his vet, Castiel took care of Misha — who turned out was only two months old at the time — until he was healthy and playful again. Not to his surprise, Romeo was the target of the little feline's mischiefs, and Romeo was enjoying every second of it. They were inseparable; although, with Romeo not knowing his actual ability and what he could do to such a small animal, it could be a bit worrying. Castiel kind of lost count how many times he rescued Misha's head from Romeo's _mouth_ , even though he knew that Romeo was gentle, yet he still couldn't take any chances.

So, two years later, Castiel had a Siberian Husky who was so happy that he had a little brother and a black cat who grew up with a dog. And most probably Misha had forgotten that he was actually a cat. 

Henceforth the fact that he would bounce excitedly towards Castiel, whenever he took out the harnesses and leash. During the walk, he would pace and run proudly next to Romeo.

" _Ow!_ What's up, boy?" the sharp jerk on one of the leashes in his hand broke Castiel's train of thought on how he ended up with his furry babies. He turned to see what made one of his two boys make the sudden stop, that, of course, was followed by the other one. 

It was a bush of flowers.

He sighed as both Romeo and Misha sniffed on the colourful flowers while moving from one bush to another. As he stopped there, he knew that it was obviously _impossible_ to go anywhere without his two boys. Especially with then planted their feet solid on the ground, and in Romeo's case, he would just sit still. 

Castiel decided to wait for them while having his mind flew to his to-do list for today. For this week he had two projects to work on, and one deadline to meet on Thursday. The first one, of course, the tablets that he was working on with Charlie and the team. The one for Thursday was a short article on creative writing that he was asked to do as a contributor on an online portal belonging to his friend. It was quite curious why his friend asked him to do it since what Castiel did was more to the academic side. But, if he gave it a more profound thought, maybe creative thinking and writing also played some parts in creating a meaningful academic paper or article.

Castiel looked at his watch, it was almost noon, and they were still halfway in the park, not even one lap. Although to be fair, they took the furthest route, from the outskirts of the park. He counted the time that might be needed for them to get back to their original point, give or take. It might already be lunchtime by the time they got there. However, it might allow them to try the vintage cafe that they passed when they started. 

He had passed the cafe several times when going for a run at this park, but he never had a chance to drop by and try. Today he had the opportunity, so _why not?_ The place looked like a decent and lovely spot to have lunch, and pet friendly as well, obviously. Yeah, it would be a good lunch plan for Castiel and his boys, before they went home and Castiel has to start on his work.

 _"Oh, fuck!"_ he almost shouted unconsciously when he remembered that his deadline might be shorter than he had planned for on Thursday. That would be the day where he should leave for his father's birthday on their summer house in Rhodes Island, a four-hour drive. If he wanted to arrive at a reasonable time, Castiel had to leave at four in the afternoon, the latest, which means his deadline should be at two.

More than eight hours _less_ than he expected.

He wondered if Charlie was still interested in going with him. Castiel asked Charlie to go with him as his plus one, given the circumstances that she already knew Abaddon and Balthazar really well, and had met with Gabriel once. At least she knew more people, besides Castiel, on that weekend. Moreover, by having Charlie there would mean extra support for Castiel, especially with his father _and_ Lucifer who will be at the same house with him.

The birthday celebration was meant only for family, which includes Charles Shurley's sibling, the feisty and no-bullshit Aunt Amara. Which was quite fair, according to Castiel and Abaddon, since it's been ages since they met his Aunt Amara and her children. Well, except Balthazar, clearly, especially that they went out together quite regularly, with Charlie as well. 

One thing that Castiel also looked forward to the most from reuniting with the whole family was meeting his brother, the other brother - Gabriel. Usually, when Gabriel went home, he would make delicious pastries or cakes for the entire family to enjoy. Moreover, it was always different every day and each year. 

Maybe he should make a stop at the bakery near his flat for his working snack later.

"Have you finished with the flowers, Romeo?" Castiel asked his Husky, who had turned his attention to a feral cat nearby, along with Misha. Of course, they both earned a warning hiss from the long-haired tabby before it turned to run and climb a tree. "Okay, leave the poor cat alone, boys. We still have half a lap to go."

Along the way of his walk-semi-run, Castiel was in awe to find out that the few people who were in the park today brought their pets along. So far he had stopped to look, giggle, or pet on dogs, cats, reptiles, even an alpaca. He also almost crashed into a baby stroller as he couldn't take his eyes off a beautiful monitor lizard that was being friendly with a golden retriever.

"Right, so here we are," Castiel huffed as they arrived at the cafe that he had his eyes on since they arrived at the park. 

Now that he took a second look, the cafe was quite adorable. It reminded him of a vintage house in a European village, with brick stone walls, clay roofs, and a chimney. It might be a little out of place for this cafe to be located in the city, but with the park's surroundings — trees, greens, and all — it fits really well. As Castiel walked approaching the main building, he was in awe with the interiors. The walls filled with photos of customers and their animal buddies, then the ceilings were decorated with fake plants that created shades and a calming atmosphere. 

While he was still admiring his surroundings and walked further inside, Castiel stopped abruptly when he found out that there was an _actual_ tree growing in the centre of the cafe. Not only that, but the tree also went through the roof and was decorated with smaller plants. Underneath the tree, some bowls were filled with water for the animal guests. 

Even though inside the cafe was spacious, Castiel only saw five tables — three four-seaters and two two-seaters. On each table, he also noticed there was a spring hook being bolted to the wooden wall, probably installed for the pet owners to clasp their pets' leashes. 

"Well, this looked like a nice place to have brunch, right boys?" he looked at his husky and his cat who were busy sniffing around, "Maybe we can drop by here more often and have a change of scenery while I work."

He then walked to the counter and smiled as he saw the options of dog food and cat food were stated as homemade. Each of the pet food was fashioned with themes, like meals that you would see in children menus. His smile grew even wider when he read another note that said for every dine-in pet meal ordered, they will lend a drinking bowl. The customers could fill it with water from the faucets inside or outside the cafe for their pets.

"Perfect," Castiel muttered under his breath while continuing to read the menu for humans and stood in the queue. Or barely a queue, since it was only one person before him and no one behind him. He had his attention at the smoked salmon and cheese cream bagel. Although he knew that wasn't the most innovative dish he found at the menu, it looked delicious to him at the moment. Also, he always wondered what hot chocolate with dried _chilli_ would taste like.

"Hey, how's it going today? Anything for you guys, meal, drinks?" 

When he saw his next customer didn't realise that it was his turn to be served, the cashier person greeted the tall man who was with his dog and cat on leashes and still reading the menu board. "Whoa, beautiful kids you've got there, man. Can I know their names?"

While he walked closer to the cashier, Castiel knew that he couldn't hide his proud smile from the comment about his boys. "Absolutely. The husky here is Romeo, and that demon spawn who thinks he's a tiny puppy is Misha. Say hello to the nice man, boys," his request was replied with a cheerful bark and a monotone mew. "Thank you. Uh, honestly, this is my first time visiting here, so any recommendations on which food for them?"

He might be asking the right question to the right person because for the next _five minutes_ , Castiel was served with a monologue on what are the ingredients the cafe used for both cat food and dog food. The explanation also included nutritions that are best for Siberian Huskies and domestic cats, that Castiel actually had known from his vet. Still, he really appreciated that the cashier person learnt _all_ this information for their customers.

"So, those are my recommendations for your boys, my good sir."

"Sounds great, so I'll take those, and as for me I'd like the smoked salmon and cheese cream bagel and a _sashimi_ salad, please?"

The man behind the counter nodded with a smile, "Sure, any drinks?"

"Tap water is just fine, thanks."

There were soft tapping sounds from the tablet that was used as the register as the staff before Castiel calculated his order. Meanwhile, he continued to read the menu and made a soft "ooh" or "aah" every now and then when he read the ingredients in the dishes being served. 

One of the meals being served really made Castiel had to hold himself from either changing his order or to make an _additional_ order. It was a bowl of fruit salad with chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, almond, oatmeal, poured with dragon fruit _and_ yoghurt smoothie. 

Even from reading the ingredients, Castiel could feel the freshness and deliciousness in his throat and body. 

He was about to move on to the next dish when he felt someone tapped his shoulder. For a second, he wondered who would find him here at _this_ hour and _this_ day, but when he turned around to see, Castiel could feel his heart jumped so hard it almost broke his ribs.

"Hey, _Castiel!_ I thought you looked familiar!"

Dean.


	6. Face of Constellations and Two Hearts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A walk in the park could bring something more for Castiel, that he never expected before.

He thought he was facing  _ directly  _ into the sun. People said that when you were smiling with all of your heart, it showed on your face and it made you glow. Castiel knew that regular humans only owned one heart. Still, he was quite sure that the man before him — who had playful green eyes, a face full of constellations of freckles, and the warmest smile Castiel had ever seen — was no regular human. Either he had two hearts, just like The Doctor, or his heart was more prominent than ordinary human that it could make him look as bright as the sun.

_ “Wah-choo!” _

The loud sneeze that came from Dean broke Castiel’s train of thought, and apparently made both of his animals turn to him in surprise. Misha was now glaring at Dean with a look that could make you think that Dean’s sneeze had insulted  _ seven _ generations of his ancestors. Usually, this was one of Castiel’s favourite looks of Misha’s that would end up in the cat being snuggled.

“D-Dean, hey, are you alright?” Castiel turned to follow Dean’s face who was now facing away from him. There was a spark of worry in Castiel’s mind, because the last time Dean was with him, he was all  _ fine _ . Now, a few seconds with him — and his pets — had made Dean sneezes loudly and started to sniffle. 

Was it one of his two boys that caused it?

After a few moments, Dean straightened his back before picking a tissue from the counter — and smiled a thank you to the man at the register (whom Castiel had utterly forgotten about for the time being). He wiped his nose with it, and when he had stopped sniffling, Dean finally turned to Castiel with an apologetic look on his face. “Sorry about that. I, uh, I’m allergic to cats.”

_ Oh, fuck. _

There must have been a visible change of expression on Castiel’s face, or maybe he was swearing out loud without realising it. Because on the next second, Dean chuckled lightly and placed a hand on one of Castiel’s shoulders.

“That’s okay, Cas, I have something in my car, I can take it later. Anyway, have you ordered? Mind if I’m joining you?”

That was a series of sentences that Castiel couldn’t believe he would hear from the man before him. He had to take a second glance to Dean after he said it. Not only Dean called Castiel with a shortened version of his name — that he  _ never _ told him — but Dean actually had an allergy medicine on stand by, and he would take it before  _ joining _ Castiel for a meal?

“Yeah, I have, actually,” Castiel replied before realising something, “oh, fuck! I’m so sorry. I was completely distracted. How much do I have to pay?”

“No worries, man,” the cashier guy threw a  _ knowing _ smile to Castiel, before showing him the tablet. “Are you gonna use cash or cards?”

Castiel tried so hard not to notice the cheeky smile from the man behind the counter and handed him his debit card, “Card.”

After receiving the card from his customer, the man behind the counter proceeded to process the payment. When he stopped typing and tapping on the tablet some moments later, a beeping sound came from the small device in front of him, and a receipt was being printed. He ripped the receipt, joined it with the debit card, and took a round-shaped beeper from under the desk before handing them to the customer in front of him. “Okay, you can pick your table and here’s your beeper. It will let you know when your food is ready. Also, the water bowls for your fur babies. The faucet is outside, turn right and look down.”

“Great, thanks, man,” Castiel received everything that was handed to him and then turned to Dean, who reflexively helped him with the bowl and beeper.

For the second time in less than ten minutes, Castiel experienced a cliche that he only ever knew from other people, and he was starting to be sceptical about it. When the green-eyed and taller man before him helped to take some items from Castiel’s hand, there was a moment where Dean’s fingers brushed his. As it happened, Castiel could feel the thumping organ inside him  _ burst _ into thousands of small butterflies that flew happily inside his stomach, fluttering and tickling.

“Oh, right, thank you, Dean,” Castiel smiled at Dean when he finally could put the debit card inside his pocket. “So, you’re ready to order?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Dean handed the rest of Castiel’s items before taking a step back and tried his best to keep a distance from Misha, “can you find us a table, Cas? I’ll meet you there. Your choice, inside or outside.”

The willpower within Castiel to get his mind,  _ ironically _ , straight when Dean said that was beyond his expectation. He can only huff when he saw from the corner of his eyes that the cashier guy snorted and had to press laughter while preparing for Dean to order. 

“Sure, see you outside, Dean,” right after he received a smile as a reply from Dean, Castiel quickly went outside so his cat won’t cause a more allergic reaction to Dean. Also, his animals could enjoy the fresh air. 

When he was outside, the weather was absolutely gorgeous, that he thought it was ridiculous. The park was still as vacant and peaceful as before, but the sun shone so bright it brought out all the natural colours of his surroundings. There were also small animals running around, from squirrels, cats, and Castiel was quite sure he saw a fox run behind some trees.

Castiel chose the picnic table-styled one and hooked the leashes on the designated clasp, and then he went to fill the drinking bowls with fresh water from the faucet. When he returned to his table, Dean still wasn’t there. For a bit while Castiel wondered if it had actually happened. Dean was showing up behind him while queueing at the cafe and offered to join him for lunch. 

Although, the man he was still not here now.

Could it be that Dean suddenly changed his mind and decided that he’d rather have his lunch with someone else and somewhere else, instead of with Castiel here? 

How long had it been since he walked from the cashier? To answer his own question, Castiel took a look at his watch. Apparently, three minutes.

A soft bark from Romeo woke Castiel from his thoughts, and also his insecurities.

The Siberian Husky was now sitting beside him on the bench, while Misha was on the table laying down and absorbing the warm sun rays. Maybe he still remembered some ways to be a cat after all. Romeo, on the other hand, might have felt that his human was worried a little bit, so he put his head on the table and gave out a small whine.

“Are you hungry, boy?” Castiel rubbed Romeo’s head lovingly and bumped his forehead to the husky, and then he showed the beeper to Romeo, who sniffed it for a second before the mutt huffed. “It’s not beeping yet, so I think our food was still being prepared. Let’s wait for a bit longer, yeah?” he ended his monologue with a kiss on the pup’s forehead.

“You really loved your boys, aren’t you, Cas?”

Once again, Castiel was caught off guard by Dean. The man Castiel was waiting for had shown up behind him, from the direction of the parking lot. He now claimed his seat in front of Castiel, next to Misha. Made Castiel grew worried about him and his allergy.

“Yeah, they’re my best friends,” Castiel chuckled and fondled Romeo’s head. “So, how’s your allergy, Dean?”

Dean smiled cheekily and showed a small medicine pack, “I’ve got my allergy meds, so I should be fine for the next hour or so, although I think it should be alright since we’re in the outdoors. So, hey, how’re you? It’s a surprise to see you here.”

“Yeah, I-I actually live nearby. I love to take my boys here for a run. What about you?”

Dean ran his hand on his ’90s styled brown hair that now looked a little bit blond-ish under the bright light. “I was having a meeting just a few blocks from here. Then when I finished, I Googled if there’s any good place to have lunch around here, so here I am.”

“I hope you’re not blaming your Google now that it leads you  _ here _ , with an allergy,” the blue-eyed man smiled and tapped the head of his cat. The feline opened his eyes and yawned, before turning and once again lay down on his side. 

“No, no,” Dean’s smile grew wider, and he started to scratch Misha’s back. He didn’t realise that the smile he had on his face brought an alien  _ warmth _ to his lunch companion’s chest, and face. “I’m actually  _ glad _ to meet and have a chat with you while enjoying my lunch. So, what are you doing here on a Tuesday noon? Taking a day off?”

Castiel shook his head softly, “I’m a freelancer, so my work hours are quite different from other people. What about yourself? You’re here for lunch, and how far are you from where you should be?”

“Well,  _ not _ so far honestly,” Dean was about to continue his answer, but both of their beepers had gone off. “Ooh, great! Hey, give me your beeper, I’ll help you take yours.”

There was no chance to reply for Castiel, and the taller man he was with had taken his beeper and went to the cafe’s counter to take their food. Castiel studied Dean from behind. Yes, the beautiful man was tall, although Castiel would say that their height difference is just  _ perfect _ . Dean also had an excellent choice in fashion when he wasn’t in his  _ old _ t-shirt and boxer, probably since today he was having a meeting. Dean was wearing a light blue hoodie top with a dark grey blazer jacket and a pair of khaki pants. His feet were wrapped with white sports shoes. 

A  _ weird _ combination of them all, but somehow it  _ worked _ really well on him.

“What do you guys think?” he turned to his Husky, who was snoozing next to him, then to his cat, who was  _ still _ sleeping. “He’s seemed like a nice guy, right? And I think you both kinda like him, even you, Misha. Although he was highly allergic to you.”

Misha lifted his head and yawned widely before setting his eyes to Castiel.

“Come on, let me have this nice moment with him, okay? I’ve treated you guys to nice food,” right after he said that Dean came to the table with the dog and cat food. Castiel laughed lightly when he saw the little flags on top of the food with a cartoon picture of a dog and a cat. “Thank you so much, Dean.”

“No worries, I’ll be back with our food and the drinks, okay?” Once again, before receiving any answer from the other man, Dean had jogged to the counter again.

“See? He brought your food first,” Castiel looked to both of his animals, who were now stood up and waiting excitedly. “Come here, Misha, don’t eat on the table,” he put both bowls on the side of the table, next to their drinking bowls. Right after he put the food down, both of the Husky and the cat gobbled them.

“Hey, so these are yours,” Dean had now returned with a tray for Castiel. It had a paper pack with the salmon and cream cheese bagel, a medium-sized plastic cup with his sashimi salad in it, and a tin glass of tap water. “Now, I’ll get mine.”

Castiel really was in awe with Dean. Not only because he went back and forth taking  _ their _ food, and  _ also _ Castiel’s pet’s food. Dean also prioritised everybody else’s meal before  _ finally _ went to take his own. It felt like that morning at his house again, where Dean took care of Castiel, even though he barely knew him. 

“Okay, our meals are finally here, and,  _ of course _ , your babies have already finished their food. So, let’s eat,” Dean put his tray on the table, and there was a massive hamburger on it and a medium portion of chips.

“You have a good appetite,” Castiel commented.

Dean only grinned before he bit the burger, a few moments later there was a surprised expression on his face. “Hot damn. This is  _ fantastic _ !”

When he heard that comment, Castiel moved his neck to Dean’s burger, “What is that you’re having?”

“It only said homemade hamburger, not vegetarian, though. But, this is delicious, Cas. Do you wanna give it a try?” Dean pushed his burger to his friend’s direction, who clearly didn’t expect to be offered. As he watched Castiel try to bite the food, and had his blue eyes widened in surprise, Dean grinned in satisfaction. “Yeah? Damn, I might come here  _ often _ if they serve their burger  _ this _ good!”

His comment made Castiel  _ almost _ spit out the food inside his mouth, luckily he was ready to prevent that to happen. After he swallowed the burger and had a gulp of water, Castiel intended to continue their conversation. So he could know a bit more about Dean. “Dean, you said you had a meeting around here, what are you working on, actually?” 

“Oh yeah,” Dean wiped his lips with the tissue, “I’m currently studying for my Masters, and my interview was more like a consultation, really. I need my respondent’s insight for me to work on my thesis.” 

He couldn’t believe what he heard. Dean was studying for his Masters, just like Castiel did years ago. “Sounds interesting. What are you studying?”

The question somehow made Dean’s face turn a few shades deeper of scarlet, and the bravado that was on his face before was slightly disappeared. “Um, Sports Medicine. I’m thinking of becoming a physical therapist in sports.”

“Interesting,” Castiel stirred his sashimi salad. “Do you play sports?”

Dean nodded quietly while crunched the burger wrapper into a ball. Then, to Castiel’s surprise, he  _ raised _ his index finger on his direction while drinking his soda drink. He had to clench his jaws tightly to prevent his smile from showing widely when knowing Dean  _ also _ did that. 

“Sorry, I need that drink,” Dean finally finished his soda and continued, “I do, actually. I played baseball and a bit of lacrosse back in high school. You?”

The question was that being thrown to him made Castiel blushed, “No, actually. I guess I was the one you’d say as a nerd when I was in school.” He wasn’t  _ wholly _ lying on that one. Castiel  _ was _ a nerd when he was in school and uni. He loved to read basically, but at the same time, he also loved to sleep around. Although, he didn’t think  _ this _ was a fact that he would share with Dean. Even though the man had caught him sleeping with his roommate.

“Really? Wow, wouldn’t think you were a nerd if I see you now, Cas,” Dean answered, and he even laughed when he saw Castiel tilting his head in confusion. “You probably were _the_ _prettiest_ nerd in your school back then.”

The words that came from Dean rolled right into Castiel’s mind and made him blushed heavily that he couldn’t even disguise it. Castiel could only look away from Dean and waited for the colour on his face to return to its regular one. “I, uh, I don’t know, really. I didn’t pay much attention to that.”

Another wasn’t  _ entirely _ a lie. Since Castiel knew that he could woo anyone he wanted to bed, he couldn’t care less about the vanity rank of his school and campus. He didn’t even get excited about prom nights. He only came and ended up with a member of the basketball team in the empty teacher’s lounge.

“So, this freelancer gig you do,” Dean broke the awkward silence, “what is it? Something related to your  _ awesome _ nerdiness?”

This time it was Castiel’s turn to chuckle. “I, uh, I’m a linguist. I help to translate documents and historical tablets at the university,” he mentioned the name of the university he was working at. When he saw Dean didn’t give a reaction of familiarity, Castiel knew that it wasn’t the one Dean was studying at.

“What are you currently working on?”

This was something unusual for Castiel. To have actual length  _ conversation _ with someone he was interested in and didn’t go  _ directly _ to bed. 

“Well, it was a tablet that one of the professors found somewhere in Indonesia. It curiously had carvings in an ancient language, and they asked me to help to translate it.”

“That sounds cool,” Dean ran his finger on Misha’s head, made the cat turn and showed his belly before Dean scratched it. “What language was it?”

“Um, Enochian.”

Dean’s eyes widened in surprise, “That language was  _ real _ ? I thought it was something for films or series, and you can read it?  _ Holy shit! _ ” His suddenly raising voice awoke Misha, who was now sat up and stared sharply at Dean. “Ah, sorry, sorry.”

“Eh, don’t mind him, Dean. Yeah, I took Ancient Language at uni for both Undergraduate and Masters, and Russian for my second Undergraduate.”

Dean’s face seemed to be frozen in shock for the time being, but then it suddenly changed when he rose up. “Okay, now hold that story. I think this is one that should be accompanied by snacks. Don’t go anywhere, I’m gonna go buy something for us, and you have to tell me  _ more _ about your studies!”

Right after Dean walked to the cafe building, Castiel let out a groan and had his forehead to the table. He honestly couldn’t  _ understand _ what had happened to him. This wasn’t what he  _ usually _ did with someone he wanted to sleep with. He wouldn’t  _ share _ stories from his uni days and everything. He’d go to the sexy conversation right away. But there was  _ something _ in Dean that made Castiel want to know more about him. 

_ Oh, fuck. _

Was he becoming what Abaddon said the other day? Has he  _ finally _ met his match?

_ Fuck, no. _

That was  _ too _ far. No, that was a thought that was stretched too far. If Castiel had it traced back, Dean went over to him because the green-eyed man thought he recognised Castiel from afar, and he wasn’t wrong. Since Dean was about to have lunch, and so did Castiel, it was  _ understandable _ that they had it together here.  _ Simple _ science.

But Dean was allergic to cats, and he had to take a pill so his allergy won’t react while having lunch with Castiel, who brought a cat. That was where Castiel lost an explanation. Even if he did, it was an unlikely situation. Or something too good to be true.

So, what  _ actually _ happened here today?

“Hey, look at the colour,” Dean suddenly showed up before him. He carried a massive bowl of fruit salad with chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, almond, oatmeal, poured with dragon fruit  _ and _ yoghurt smoothie. The bowl was now looked as if filled with a colourful mix of food.

_ What the fuck? _

That was what Castiel  _ almost _ ordered.

“Oh, I hope you like this kind of dessert, Cas?” Dean suddenly became aware that his lunch companion was silent for a few seconds.

Castiel snapped his head up to face Dean, “Oh, yeah, yeah, I love it. It was just funny because I  _ almost _ ordered this before you came.”

“Seriously?” Dean handed Castiel another spoon. “Well, now you can try it.” 

They both enjoyed the fruit bowl and admired the freshness of it before Dean finally spoke again. “Okay, Enochian. How did you decide to learn it? I mean, was languages always something that caught your attention?”

“Well, it was a long story, honestly,” Castiel sucked through his teeth as he took a spoonful of dragon fruit yoghurt mix. “True that languages fascinated me, but  _ the choice _ to take Ancient Language probably came from my rebellious phase. I know, I know, it was weird to understand. It was just something I did to get my father’s attention back then, really.”

“Did it work?” there was a faint tone of sympathy in Dean’s voice.

“No,” Castiel replied shortly. “He was, uh,  _ busy _ with his work, and he practically didn’t pay much attention to what I do at school. He only sent the money for my tuition without actually getting involved, or even interested, in my studies. So, I finished my Masters’ study in Ancient Language, and then I took another undergraduate degree, Russian.”

“Holy shit!” There was genuine excitement in Dean’s face now. “Russian? Man, that’s gotta be some language to learn.”

“это было*,” Castiel showed off and copied Dean’s laugh — and probably missed the fact that Dean was staring at him with adoration in his face. The hint of bitterness vanished entirely from Castiel’s voice. “It was, but I really had a good time learning Russian back then.”

Dean opened one of the two bottles of water that he also bought along with the fruit bowl, “So, if you thought your Dad didn’t pay you enough attention, why did you keep taking the subject? I mean, you can drop it and take another, right, since he wouldn’t care anyway.”

This time the chuckle that came from Castiel had a sheepish tone, instead of cynical. “I, uh, I thought the work line for my study would take me  _ away _ from my Dad. That i don’t have to see him that often anymore. But, apparently, I was wrong.”

“Oh. Hey, look, man, sorry if my question  _ brought up _ something uncomfortable for you,” once again, the consolation tone rolled in Dean’s voice.

Castiel smiled, “No, no, that’s okay, Dean. I had gotten over it. Don’t worry.” He also took the water bottle and started to take a sip.

“Hey, if anything, you might not be as far as you wanted with your father, but you’re living the life you wanted now. And that  _ should _ count,” Dean stretched his hand that was holding the bottle and waited for Castiel to make a toast with their bottles.

As if on cue, right after they made the toast, Dean’s phone went off, and he quickly took it from his hoodie pocket to answer it. “Hey, how’s it going? Hm, nah, just having lunch.”

There was a curious pang of insecurity in Castiel’s chest when he found out that Dean didn’t mention who he was having lunch with. But then, he asked himself another question,  _ why _ should Dean mention him? They were two people who happened to  _ reunite _ after an awkward  _ morning after _ and had lunch  _ together _ . Was there anything that should make this lunch as something special?

Well, even  _ if _ there was, it probably was Castiel’s crush on Dean. 

Or was it even still a crush now?

When Dean ended his conversation, he turned awkwardly to Castiel. “Hey, Cas, this was fun, but I gotta go.”

The air between them suddenly had a  _ sharp _ change. So sharp it almost cut Castiel’s heart.

He disguised it by looking at his phone — almost  _ three _ in the afternoon. “Oh shit, so am I. I still have some deadline to work on,” he quickly bent down to collect the food and drinking bowls before unclasping Romeo and Misha’s leashes from the table.

“Is it the Enochian ones?” Dean asked as he arranged the bowls on the trays.

Castiel led his animals to the open area of their table, so he could walk them easier. “Yeah, one of them. The other one was an article my friend asked me to write.”

Castiel might do it without realising it, but he ended up  _ waiting _ for Dean to arrange their eating utensils on the tray. Then they both started to walk together into the cafe, Dean with his food trays and Castiel with his pets.

“Sounds awesome,” Dean replied to Castiel, “what is it for? Maybe I’ll read it when it’s up.”

Once again, Castiel could feel his face blushed to several shades of red as he heard Dean’s response. “Sure, I can give the link to you later. I’ll email you or something?”

“Yeah, wait,” Dean placed the food and drinking bowls into the bin that had a picture of a cat and a dog, then he pushed the rest of the utensils into the bin that had a picture of a human. Then he placed the tray on the assigned spot. “Right, give me your phone, I’ll write down my email and number for you.”

He almost couldn’t  _ believe _ that he was finally going to get Dean’s phone number. Castiel took out his phone from his pocket and opened the Contacts app - he wouldn’t want Dean to see his photo with Abaddon and got the wrong idea. “Here, just put it in here.”

As weird as it would sound, both Castiel and Abaddon had an agreement that they won’t mention about each other’s existence when they hooked up. They would think that if it  _ wasn’t _ for a serious commitment, then why  _ share _ too much and be invested? As for now, with Dean, Castiel was still caught in the middle. He’d love to talk deeper with Dean, but somehow there was something — especially after that phone call — that stopped him from doing so.

“Right, here it is,” Dean handed back the blue-eyed man’s phone, then afterwards he did the same to his phone. “ _ Your _ turn.”

Smiled at the offer, Castiel took the gadget from Dean’s hand. On the contrary to Castiel, Dean handed his phone just as it is, and this made Castiel laugh bitterly in his head when realising it. Maybe this would be Dean’s turn to think that Castiel was the one who was hiding something, a love partner, perhaps.

After the man before him finished giving his contact details, Dean received his phone back. With a cheeky smile, he opened the screen and found Castiel’s number in his phone book. “Castiel Novak?” this time there was a satisfied smile on his face. “Nice. Okay, I really gotta go now. Thank you so much for lunch, Cas. I’ll see you when I see you, yeah?”

“Thank you too, Dean. nice seeing you again.”

There was an uneasy silence between them that Castiel was sure if given different time and place, he would leap forward  _ and _ crashed his lips to Dean’s before having Dean hoisted him up and pushed his back to the wa-

“Well, bye, Cas. Bye, Romeo and Misha.” 

Dean’s voice broke Castiel’s fantasy about the man, and all he could do was waved lightly to Dean as he watched him turn around and headed to the parking spot area. As Castiel saw Dean walked further from him, he knew that concentrating on his work later would be a considerable challenge, especially after what happened today. He quietly took his phone out from his pocket, and as he searched for Dean’s contact entry, he could feel his heart thumping fast, way faster than usual. 

Maybe today was the karma that he earned after teasing Abaddon for talking about meeting someone comfortable and setting down.

Maybe Castiel really had met his match, and his name is  _ Dean Winchester. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *) это было | eto bylo = It was


	7. The Story To Look Forward To

“Charlie, please tell me you’re really coming with me today.”

“I  _ am _ ! Don’t worry.”

Castiel finished his orange juice then turned to talk to Charlie on his laptop’s video call. “What time are you finished? It’s gonna be around four hours drive to my Dad’s lake house, and we’re gonna stop for dinner, right?”

“Of course,” the reply from Charlie came in a hushed voice. From the angle and the gesture she was shown to the screen, she probably was on her laptop playing games while using her phone or tablet to do the video call. “My last class is at four. Can you pick me up at the campus? Are you going somewhere first?”

“No, I have to finish my deadline in five hours, then pack before I pick you up,” the dark-haired man stood up to place the dirty dishes into the dishwasher. After he arranged the plates and cutleries, Castiel poured the dishwashing liquid, then he turned the machine on. When he heard the dishwasher had started, Castiel returned to his laptop and stared at the screen. 

He looked for a moment at Charlie, who was still in her element with the game, and the changes in her expression were quite interesting to watch. Castiel didn’t know much about video games, but he always enjoyed watching people playing them. His knowledge of games or conquests was more to conquer someone to be on top  _ or _ below him. But this time, he felt like his skills were tragically dropped right after he met one Dean Winchester. He wasn’t like the other men of Castiel’s quests. There was something  _ more _ about Dean that Castiel would like to know. More than merely someone to be laid.

He poured more orange juice to his glass, then dramatically drank it as if it was a liquor with more than 10% alcohol. He even swirled the liquid around in his glass before addressing his friend, “Charlie, I have a story for you, and I might need a bit of advice.”

“Whoa, Cas, did something happen? You sounded so serious,” Charlie finally paused her game to turn and face her friend on the screen. “Is  _ it _ something serious?”

After he took a deep breath, Castiel looked back at his friend and answered, “It is for  _ me _ .” He rested his chin on his palm while his eyes followed the lines of letters on the screen. Not reading it, just going and forth between lines. 

He leered to the small Skype window on the top right corner of his screen, that was still showing Charlie’s concerned look. After a few seconds of staring contest, she raised her eyebrows as if demanding for more information. Castiel finally gave in, “Fine. you remember Dean?”

The shift from concern to confusion in Charlie’s expression was so fast, it might win her an Academy Award someday. “Who?”

“The roommate, from the man I slept with last weekend?” Castiel started to continue working while he gave the answer. They always did this all the time when working on the tablet project, since they had the same parts of it to work on. There were also times when they just had their Skypes on, but  _ none _ of them was talking, only the sounds of keyboards clicking or music playing that came from the speakers. Another time, both of them would watch the same Netflix film on a shared screen and scream at each other over the plot holes or awful CGIs. 

“Is it the guy with the Aspirin?” Charlie had her attention to her game again after knowing it  _ wasn’t _ a life or death situation. Her reply earned a nod from the man she was video-calling with. “What’s up with him?”

“I met him again,” Castiel replied shortly, and read the same paragraph for the fourth time to ensure he understood it right. It took him quite a while to realise that Charlie’s attention was now back at him, and she was full-on facing him that her face was the only thing shown on the minimise Skype window. “Uh, yesterday. When I was walking Romeo and Misha at the pet park near my flat.”

“He just  _ popped _ up there? Was he stalking you?”

“What?  _ No! _ ” Castiel probably replied a bit louder than he intended to, but he really didn’t expect to receive that question. This time, he really thought he should stop talking and concentrate more on the work, it was more complicated than he expected. 

“It was pure coincidence that we bumped there. Anyway, my work is more complex than I expected, so I gotta work on it soon if I want to finish on time later. I’ll tell you the full story on our way to my father’s lake house, okay?”

“Cool, a cliffhanger. But, yeah, that also reminds me, I have to pack as well,” Charlie giggled cheekily and turned her game off. “Okay, Cas, see you at four, yeah?”

Castiel smiled at his best friend, “Yep. Thank you so much, Charlie. See you in a few hours!”

“Ta!”

After he blew a kiss to Charlie, Castiel shut down his Skype and returned to the window that showed his reading material. Then he tried so hard to concentrate on the piece of writing that should be finished in four and a half hours.

There were two miscalculations on Castiel’s plan for working on the article project. 

First, the deadline was supposed to be on Sunday, but he was completely forgotten about his father’s birthday celebration this weekend. He had to be there on Thursday night, which means he would be losing  _ three _ whole days to work on it if he wanted to spend the weekend with his family. It wasn’t something impossible for Castiel, but that means he really had to give the research his most attention and concentration. Also, he had to put aside the work he should be doing for the tablet project.

Second, he should have started the day  _ before _ , right after he finished his run with Romeo and Misha. But, of course, it was  _ another _ miscalculation with his meeting with Dean. That delayed his supposedly starting time for the work to almost  _ three _ hours.

While he was reading the reference article, Castiel turned his head slowly to his mobile phone. There was Dean’s number there, and he could easily send a text message to him, just to say hi or something. Well, they did hit it off quite well yesterday, right? At least before Dean received the mysterious phone call.

Who was that calling him? There was clearly an air of awkwardness on Dean afterwards, and it only disappeared right before he went off.

Neither Castiel nor Dean did anything to the number that was clearly on each other’s phone. To his own surprise, he couldn’t remember when was the last time he was this anxious over someone not texting him even though they had his number. Castiel also couldn’t remember when was the last time he checked his phone  _ this _ much.

“Okay, okay, okay. Later,” Castiel grunted and moved to the living room where he would be far away from his phone. As far as a studio apartment would give him.

For the next two hours, Castiel managed to concentrate on his task, right until his phone suddenly rang. Just like a meerkat noticing that danger was near, he stood up straight on the couch and froze. It wasn’t until the third or fourth rang, he finally browsed most of his memory for any phone call he should be expecting. 

Castiel got up from his seat (with the phone still ringing) and walked to the kitchen table where he left his phone. He didn’t want to get his hopes high, but would it be  _ possible _ ?

He craned his neck over the phone, and read the name on the screen.

Jody Mills.

He didn’t realise that he was holding his breath for some time, but apparently, he did. Castiel let out the oxygen he overly stored inside his lungs in relief before answering the phone. 

“Hello, Jody?”

“Hey, Castiel!” the friendly voice of a woman came from the receiver. “Sorry to bother you, I just wanna let you know that I can drop by early to your place since I can get off work in an hour. What time are you leaving?”

Castiel looked at the time on the microwave before he gave a reply to Jody, “Three-thirty is the latest, Jody. if you can drop by around two-thirty or three, it would be fine.”

“Great,” even though they were talking over the phone, but the smile in Jody’s voice was quite evident. “I’ll let you know when I’m close to your place, okay?”

“Thanks very much, Jody. See you.”

After he lined off the phone, Castiel took his phone to the living room and continued to work on his article. He had had the draft, all he had to do now was compose the words to create an  _ intelligible _ reading material for people of various fields of work. Even better if people of a wide range of age could read it and use his writing as a learning or reference.

It was now almost one-thirty. Castiel only had half an hour — forty-five minutes tops — to write the article and send it to his Editor. Right, he could do this, he knew he could. The draft was there, he knew what he wanted to write.

“Let’s go, Novak!”

Well, it was a miss. 

By almost twenty minutes. 

But Castiel was happy with what he wrote, and he managed to send it to the Editor. Along with a note that he won’t be in the city and most probably  _ won’t _ be checking his email much this weekend, so they (hopefully) wouldn’t nag him with revision or the such.

Castiel turned his laptop off before he brought it to his room and put it on the bedside table. His bed was already ruled by Romeo and Misha, who were sleeping  _ all over _ the mattress. Castiel smiled when he saw them and rubbed their heads in turn before walking to his wardrobe. He pulled his favourite duffle bag out and put it on the vacant area of the bed. He then went back to get some clothes that he deemed  _ acceptable _ for meeting his family, also some underwear. Next on his list was the toiletries, Castiel took his special travelling toiletries bag and dropped it inside the duffle bag. 

Once he finished packing, Castiel took a shower and dressed in a dark blue t-shirt and denim. He took a look of himself in the mirror and put on some hair wax on his hair and styled it a bit. Once he was satisfied with how he looked, Castiel took out his red leather jacket from inside the wardrobe. It was one of the clothing items that would  _ definitely _ get him laid when he was out and hunting. But for this weekend, he thought he might wear it for luck and comfort. 

Castiel was taking a second look inside his duffle bag, wondering if he left anything out that he should be bringing, when the entrance intercom rang. He then headed to the phone that was located on the wall inside the kitchen area. “Hello?”

“Hey, Cas, it’s me. Jody.” 

“Oh, hey, Jody,” Castiel then pushed one of the buttons on the phone, “I had buzzed you in, you should also have access to my floor now. 

“Great. Thanks, Cas!”

Their quick conversation ended, and Castiel stepped to the entrance door to unlock it. As he walked back into his bedroom, Castiel noticed the clock on the wall, above the sofa. It was already two-forty five, maybe he could leave early to pick up Charlie.

He was bringing out his clothing bag and the laptop bag to the living room. As much as Castiel dreaded it, but it would be better to be  _ prepared _ than sorry when his Editor suddenly called for an urgent revision. He was about to return to his room when the doorbell rang, “It’s not locked, Jody.”

Castiel and Jody were friends from the time they were working together on a convention event project from the local government. With a good number of international representations, Castiel was hired to be one of the interpreters, of course for the guests from Russia, while Jody was on the security team. They met during the briefing, and somehow bonded over homemade food, Castiel loves to cook them, and Jody loves to eat them.

From there, Castiel invited Jody every other time to have homemade lunch or dinner at his place, along with Abaddon, Charlie, and Jody’s best friend, Donna Hanscum. 

For this weekend, Castiel didn’t know if it was a lucky coincidence or something else. Right at the moment he was wondering who he should ask to babysit Romeo and Misha, Jody suddenly called him. Apparently, she had just gone through a rough breakup, and she was looking for a place where she could feel at ease, and Castiel’s home happened to cross her mind. 

Of course, Castiel would be more than happy to help her, but the circumstance would be different since he wouldn’t even be home this weekend. So. Castiel told Jody that he won’t be in the city, but she’s more than welcome to stay, he also asked if she would mind to housesit and babysit his fur babies in return. Jody was happy to do it.

“Hello, Jody,” Castiel smiled and embraced his friend into a hug. “Thank you so much for doing this, and I’m sorry for what happened..”

Jody planted a kiss on Castiel’s cheek, “Nah, it was doomed from the beginning anyway. Thank you for giving me a place to be on my own for the weekend, I really need this.”

“Well, feel free to make yourself at home,” Castiel helped Jody to pull her small suitcase into the bedroom area. “You can choose where you want to sleep, here with them,” he nodded to the husky and cat who were still on the bed, “or open up the couch there, both of them can look directly at the telly. I have changed the sheets and pillowcase, so you don’t have to worry about my cooties, only  _ theirs _ .”

Jody laughed, and she sat on the bed while hugging Romeo, who clearly had confusion on his face. “This is perfect, Cas, thank you.”

“Okay. So, um, I have to go now. You have my number, right? If anything happened, anything at all, even if it was only you wanting someone to talk to, feel free to call me.” Castiel clung his duffle bag and lifted his laptop bag, while still setting a concerned look to Jody.

“Understood, Cas. Go, I’ll be fine, really. I don’t know if it would be  _ possible _ for you, but have fun with your family!” Jody gave another hug to Castiel before she pushed him to the main door.

“This is still  _ my _ flat, right?” His deadpan comment made both of them laughed, and with that Castiel finally left his home and headed to his car in the parking lot.

Once he had his bags inside the boot and he was sitting on the driver’s seat with the seatbelt on, Castiel started his car’s engine and placed his mobile phone on its handler on the dashboard. He began to drive his car to the exit gate, then he called Charlie with the voice command.

“Yo, Cas,” the familiar voice of Charlie Bradbury came to the speaker. 

“Charlie, I’m heading to your campus now. Might arrive a bit early, and have a quick snack at that coffee place that has Costa.”


	8. Match For The Submissive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The road trip to Charles Shurley's birthday began. Castiel and Charlie had an eye-opening talk about Castiel's little rendezvous at the pet park.

**I’m at the cafe. Enter and turn left,  
** **corner table.**

Castiel put down his phone on the table after he sent the text message to Charlie, then he smiled at the  _ matcha _ crepe cake in front of him. He knew that he could always ask Gabriel to make this kind of dessert, his big brother would be more than happy to do it while making use of Castiel as his assistant. Gabriel would give Castiel all the tasks that required concentration while  _ chatting _ with him. 

After he went on full speed for his work today, it was really relieving for Castiel to take a quiet break. That would be good preparation for him before running to the father-son storms that are Charles Shurley and Lucifer Shurley.

He was halfway savouring his crepe cake when he heard his phone chimed. Castiel looked to the screen and smiled when he read it was a text message from Abaddon.

**Cassie, what time are you arriving? Are  
you bringing someone?**

Even though Castiel had looked at the time when he just arrived and texted Charlie, he took another glance at the time on the top corner of the phone. It was almost four, Charlie should be out any time now. Given the drive would take around four hours, and they planned to have dinner first on the way, then it would be five hours, give or take, driving time in total.

**Around nine, I think.** **  
** **I’m taking Charlie, she’s still in class,  
and I’m waiting for her to finish. ** **  
** **What about you?**

Now that Abaddon asked, Castiel started to wonder if she would take anyone to the birthday weekend. Sure, Abaddon had taken someone to family events now and then, but it was more to playing a game for the nosey relatives. Or they were planning to fuck after.

**OMG, you bring Charlie! This is gonna be  
fun! ** **  
** **I’m already on the way, and yeah, I’m  
bringing someone.**

As he read the text message from his sister, Castiel could feel that she was smiling and giggling while typing. The thought made him have a smile of his own.

**Who is it this time?**

The last time Abaddon brought someone to a family event was on New Year’s celebration a few years ago. It was someone by the name of Henry or Harry, a lovely chap, he looked amiable and polite. Castiel actually felt extreme sympathy for him, since this man seemed to care for Abaddon. Yet, Castiel knew Abaddon might only want him for fun. Short time fun even.

**Well, you’ll see later, Cassie. See you  
when you arrived then, yes?**

Castiel chuckled at the reply and typed his response.

**You tease. See you in a few hours, sister  
mine.**

Maybe Abaddon brought someone from the past, a guy who was still carrying the torch for her and fantasies of having a long-term relationship with Abaddon. Although the more Castiel thought about it, it was even  _ more _ impossible that Abaddon would bring someone like that to a family event. 

On the other hand, the idea of Abaddon was bringing someone new to a family event was even  _ less _ likely. So, it might be better to just wait until he arrived to find out who this man was.

“Hey, Cas!”

Castiel looked up from his cake and saw Charlie waved at him, with a bright turquoise duffle bag. He returned the wave and nodded to the empty seat before him, so Charlie could put his bag while he finished his cake.

“Whoa, that looks good!” Charlie commented as she saw what her friend was devouring. “Can I try? If it’s good, I might order one for myself.”

“Sure,” Castiel handed the spoon in his hand and let the girl who was sitting in front of him take a bite. Based on the glee on her expression, it was very likely that Charlie would order a slice for herself. “It’s the crepe cake, mine’s  _ matcha _ . I think there were other flavours and toppings that you can try.”

“I’ll be back.”

Just after Charlie left to order her cake, once again Castiel’s phone chimed. Still confident that it was another reply from his sister, Castiel smiled and read the screen. But, what he found there was quite a surprise.

**Cassie! You and Abaddon are coming to  
Dad’s birthday party, right? I’m at the   
lake house now with Mom, Dad, Michael,   
and LUCI. Please please PLEASE get your   
asses here NOW!**

Gabriel. 

Even though Castiel could imagine how stressful the situation at the house was for Gabriel, just by reading his text, he couldn’t help but chuckle. He was surprised that Gabriel had arrived and was with his parents already. All he knew Gabriel took off from Nice yesterday, but he forgot the time. Castiel had offered Gabriel to stay at his place, and they could leave together, but the big brother said that Lord Shurley had summoned him  _ first _ . Maybe after the birthday party, and before Gabriel flies back to France, he can stay at Castiel’s place. So they can have a night out with Abaddon, Balthazar, and Charlie as well.

**Told you to stay with me so we can go  
together. Charlie and I will have an   
excellent road trip to the lake house.**

Sometimes it was fun to see Gabriel go all irritated and look for Castiel and Abaddon for rescue.

“Look! Tiramisu!” Charlie showed off her crepe cake, “I hope this tastes as better as yours, Cas. They had a tester cup there, and after your matcha, I found the Tiramisu one is the next best thing.”

Castiel watched Charlie take a bite of her cake, and her eyes widened the moment she had the fork into her mouth. Then suddenly, she pushed her plate to Castiel’s direction.

“You have to try this!” 

“I just ate more than half of mine, but yeah, sure,” Castiel commented flatly and earned a roll of eyes from the girl before him. He cut a piece of Charlie’s tiramisu crepe cake and put it inside his mouth. Once he had a taste of his second crepe cake, Castiel knew that from there on he would only request  _ every _ variation of crepe cakes from Gabriel. The tiramisu had an authentic taste, the soft coffee mixed with cocoa powder blended really well with cheese cream and the tang of rum.

“So, am I gonna get it back?” 

The question from the girl before him returned Castiel from a lovely and warm day at an Italian city where he could walk on the pebbled road and admired the historical landmarks. Where it all was in his imagination. With a defeated sigh, he cut another piece and had it before pushing the plate back to its owner.

“We  _ should _ get Gabriel to make this,” he mumbled, but loud enough to make Charlie laugh out loud.

After they finished their respective crepe cakes, Castiel and Charlie were involved in a heated discussion. Their issue this time was whether they should get another slice, or  _ two _ , of the crepe cakes to snack on the road. Just when they finished their discussion and about to request another piece, or  _ two _ , to take away, the staff told them that it wouldn’t be advised. Since the cake was so delicate, it might have melted  _ and _ misshapen risks when it wasn’t kept in the fridge for a long time.

This information practically broke their hearts, so they asked for the check instead and planned where they want to have their dinner later. After they paid for their afternoon snack, Castiel led Charlie to his car and helped her to put his bag in the backseat. 

Then they were off to Charles Shurley’s birthday weekend.

“Do you think Gabriel would make that beautiful cake for us after the party?” Charlie asked while browsing through her Spotify playlist to choose the songs that would be good to listen to for this road trip.

Castiel only shrugged at the question, “Why not? I mean he’d always loved to cook dessert for us, and he  _ did _ plan to stay at my place after the party for a week or so. He has quite a holiday this time. You can also stay at my place, you know.”

“That was actually very inviting,” Charlie put on Jason Donovan’s  _ Too Many Broken Hearts _ and started to move her body to the music. “We can have an ’80s themed party, bet Gabriel would love that.”

Castiel laughed at the suggestion, “That didn’t sound too bad, really. Probably just us, Abaddon, Gabriel, and Balthazar.  _ Oh! _ ” Castiel tapped his palm on the steering wheel, “Abaddon is taking someone to the party.”

“ _ Really? _ Who?”

The man who was driving shrugged his shoulders before replying, “I honestly don’t know. She didn’t tell me, only said that I’ll see him later. Which was weird, considering she  _ never _ said anything about meeting someone that she deemed comfortable enough to take to a family event like this.”

“Huh,” Charlie stopped dancing, and now she stared blankly outside the window. The views had shifted from the urban city with buildings and heavy traffic to suburban areas with residential houses and stores on both sides of the road. “Could it be she met someone, but she didn’t tell you because she wanted to make sure first?”

The words that came out from his driving companion made Castiel’s memory roll back to the morning after when he met with Abaddon at a diner. His sister was asking about settling down and meeting someone. Now that Castiel thought of it, along with Charlie’s words, that  _ might _ be the hint on the topic. 

“You know, she might have mentioned something about settling down and actually meeting someone for a relationship. Or something like that at the last time we had a morning-after talk,” Castiel scratched a part of his head that didn’t itch at all.

“And?”

He knew that it wasn’t a satisfactory tone on his friend’s reaction. Let alone the manner, Castiel could feel a  _ glare _ coming from the seat next to him. Sometimes he wondered, why did Charlie seem to be more possessive and protective over his twin sister, instead of him, the friend that Charlie knew  _ first _ before Abaddon.

“I, uh, I thought she was only joking, so I didn’t take it seriously?” he didn’t mean to make the answer as another form of a question. Still, Castiel really needs to know if what he did was something right.

Neither of the humans in the car made a noise after Castiel’s reply, only the electronic device on the dashboard that was still playing Charlie’s ’80s playlist that fills the vehicle with melody. This time it was  _ Simply The Best _ from Tina Turner.

Before she said her take on the Novak twins issue, Charlie let out a sigh that was mixed with a groan. “Well, she started out with a question that was outside of  _ your _ range, Cas. You didn’t think it was weird?”

“I did,” his voice might be a bit more high pitched than he intended to, then he cleared his throat to return his vocal, “that’s why I didn’t take it seriously, I guess. Because it wasn’t like Abaddon at all, and she also had the walk of shame that morning, mind you. How was I supposed to know if  _ settling down _ is something that was in her mind that time?”

Charlie was silent as if calculating the words that just came out from Castiel, with the fact that Abaddon would bring someone that Castiel didn’t know of. “Well, actually, you had a point there, Cas. Also, the fact that she went back home afterwards, and later at night she was having a girls night out with her uni mates, right? Where we bumped into her at the diner behind the campus?”

“ _ Right! _ ” this time Castiel’s voice had too much spirit in it, for someone who was puzzled about his sister’s social life. 

The girl on the passenger seat nodded slowly as if she just realised something. “Well, I suppose we just wait and find out who’s Abaddon’s date for this weekend. Anyway, what about  _ you _ , Cas?”

“What about  _ me _ ?” he took off his sunnies and stole a glance at Charlie.

“Have you found someone?” Charlie asked.

“No. Why?” Castiel replied with another question.

“What about Dean?”

Castiel could feel a jolt of electricity in his chest when he heard Dean’s name being mentioned. “Uh …”

“Wait, you said you wanted to tell me something about Dean before, remember? When I called you this morning, you said it was  _ serious _ to you,” Charlie turned the volume of Kenny Rogers singing  _ The Gambler _ down. 

He had honestly forgotten about it, and Castiel chuckled when he heard Charlie mentioned it. “You know, I honestly have forgotten about that.”

Charlie chuckled at Castiel’s counter, “So, now you remember it, come on, spill it out. Don’t leave any details.”

Castiel groaned at his friend’s response, “Aaarrggg, I should’ve bought that crepe cake and had it while telling this to you.” 

“So, is Dean someone for you, Cas?”

“I, uh, I honestly don’t know. Dean, uh, we met at the pet park yesterday, out of nowhere. He said that he was just finishing a meeting with someone nearby, and decided to have lunch at the park,” as he started to tell his story with Dean, Castiel couldn’t help to have a smile on his face. It probably was one of the best days he ever had. “So, we had lunch and had a nice talk over our works, and also his studies. He’s currently studying for his Masters, you know. He said that he wanted to be a sports’ physical therapist.”

He waited for Charlie to respond to his story, but after a few seconds, there was no reaction from her, Castiel had to turn his attention away from the road to check.

“ _ Cas! _ Jesus, don’t take your eyes away from the road like that! We’re on the highway!” Charlie shot and waved her hand to the window.

“ _ What? _ I’m sorry, I didn’t know if you were listening to my story or not!”

“I was! Okay, okay, continue, please,” Charlie pushed Castiel’s face away, to look to the road again, with her fingers. “Please be sure that I  _ will _ be listening, even though I didn’t say much. Continue.”

“O-kay,” there was doubt in Castiel’s voice, but he decided that he’d better continue before Charlie started to nag her again. “So, one of the things that we talked about was our school lives. Of course, I didn’t tell him about my adventures. Although, I told him that given that he was the jock at school, then I must be the nerd type.”

Castiel laughed when he heard the disgusted moan that came from Charlie. “Aw, come on. I didn’t tell a  _ lie _ to him, I did  _ read _ a lot back at school, you know. Especially at uni, there were so many readings that I had to do. By the way, Dean said that I probably was the prettiest nerd in my school back then, and I couldn’t say that I disagree with him.”

This time it wasn’t a displeased groan that came out from Charlie’s mouth, it was a burst of laughter. “Dude, he  _ full-on _ flirted with you!”

“I think he was,” Castiel knew that he could never hide the pride in his voice when Charlie acknowledged that someone was flirting with him. “I mean, he also seemed interested in what I do, both at uni and for work. He was quite surprised when I told him I learnt Enochian. I mean, the  _ look _ on his face alone, Charlie. Fuck, it was a look that I’d love to see again on him.”

“Huh.”

He didn’t notice the small tone from his friend. “The funny thing is when I was talking with Dean, our conversation just flowed, you know? It was like we were just two people who had known each other and caught up. It didn’t even feel weird for me to talk about my father, although not in detail. I even told him how my father was the reason why I took Ancient Language and Russian for my uni studies. Dean didn’t ask anything unnecessary, he just  _ listened _ .”

He took a deep breath before continuing his story, “Oh, there were two things that also caught my attention from that lunch. So, when he was asking about me working for the tablet, translating Enochian, he said that we might need a snack for the story. He went and got us something to enjoy, and I swear to God, Charlie, what he bought was something that I  _ almost _ ordered before he came!”

“Seriously?”

“Right? Then the second one was the fact that he’s actually  _ allergic _ to cats. And I was there with Romeo and  _ Misha _ !” the tone in Castiel’s voice became unconsciously more cheerful the more he told the story about Dean. 

“Oh, no.”

“You know what he did? He took a pill that would help him with the allergy  _ before _ having lunch with me. I mean, who’d do _ that _ ?”

“Someone who  _ wants _ to spend time with you.”

“He really did spend some time-wait,  _ what? _ ”

Once again, Castiel turned to Charlie’s direction and received a push on the face to look on the road. He cackled before he turned the lights on, it began to get dark outside, maybe they should start looking for a place to have dinner soon.

The girl on the passenger seat smiled when she knew that Castiel was  _ pretending _ to get his full concentration on the road. After she waited a few moments, Charlie finally broke the silence. “I think he  _ really _ likes you, Cas, and he sounded really nice. I mean with taking an allergy pill so he could have lunch with you and your pets.”

A smile showed on Castiel’s face after he heard Charlie’s words. “That was nice, wasn’t it? I mean, I have to be honest, I had a brilliantly good time talking with him. It’s been a while since I had an  _ actual _ conversation with someone, and not just a sweet talk because they want to get into your pants, you know?”

Throughout their months of friendship, this was probably the first time Charlie saw Castiel this vulnerable and had his bravado toned down. “Well, this was unexpected, Cas,” she said. “You  _ have _ met your match.”

“What? No.”

Charlie shrugged and started to look for a dining place nearby while responding to Castiel’s flawed argument. “I mean, if we see all the checklists, Cas, it was obvious. He flirted with you, big time, he was genuinely interested in you and what you do, and Dean even took an effort to put aside his discomfort of cats. So he could spend some time with you. And clearly, you enjoyed it. You’re submissive for him.”

“What? No.”

“Okay, it was still too early to say that. But, seriously, Cas, I think you really should consider him. From your stories, he sounded like a decent guy. Hey, there’s a five-star Italian place near here! Let’s stop and have our dinner!” Charlie suddenly shouted and surprised Castiel, completely oblivious that her friend was about to respond to her.


	9. A Surprise With Shots of Colours

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Charles Shurley's lake house, and let's meet the family.

The Italian place that Charlie found was actually live up to its stars, the food was delicious, and it could pass as genuine Italian cuisine. The wines that they serve were beautiful and perfectly recommended and paired for each food being ordered. Then the atmosphere, masterclass artwork. The building resembled the ones that you might find in Italian cities. The place was called Pronto!, and it’s on the ground floor of one of the roadside’s shops. They have several tables lined neatly on the pavement; most of them were for two patrons, and also covered by large parasols. 

Inside, the walls had brick accents, and some of them were covered in large posters of opera and musical concerts. There were faux grapevines in various shades of violet and light green. The music that was being played when they arrived was currently  _ La Donna E Mobile _ , one of Castiel’s favourites. The tables on the inside were simple, yet had their own beauty and charm. 

For his dinner, Castiel ordered ravioli pasta with spinach, also his favourite appetiser, cantaloupe melon with slices of ham. Meanwhile, Charlie ordered salmon risotto, and she even convinced Castiel to order a bottle of Moscato wine to share. Then, if they can’t finish it during dinner, it will be their snack for the rest of the trip, along with the pepper-lime potato crisps that Castiel had laid his eyes on since he first stepped into the cafe.

The music had changed to Luciano Pavarotti performing  _ La Traviata _ . Once again, Castiel felt like this place could quickly become one of his favourite go-to places for dinner or when he was looking for a place to be on his own. Unfortunately, they were now around two hours away from New Jersey, they even had passed New York.

“I like this place,” Castiel mumbled as he ran a finger on the lips of the wine glass, creating a low humming sound from the rubbing. “The atmosphere was amazing, it really made me feel like I’m somewhere in Italy. The food’s also good, I love my ravioli and my cantaloupe with ham. What about yours, Charlie?”

The girl with red hair was reading the menu when she heard Castiel ask her a question, then she lifted up her face to answer, “Sublime. I could swear that it was the best risotto I have ever tried. Hey, Cas, what say you to dessert? I bet their tiramisu is good!”

“Ooh, they have tiramisu? I want that,” Castiel leant forward to take a glance at the menu in Charlie’s hands. “Oh, damn, Gabriel’s gonna have  _ a lot _ of baking to do when he gets to my house. Hey, do they have that crepe cake thingy?”

The question that reminded Charlie of the small heaven they shared before leaving made her face beamed, and started to flip over the menu. Alas, the cafe didn’t have it, and it was quite shown on her expression as she got to the last page of the menu. “So, that would be two tiramisus then?”

“Yes,” Castiel answered and turned his face to call the waiter. “I’m ordering coffee, do you want anything else to add?”

“Water, please. Thanks, Cas,” after saying her order, Charlie turned to her phone again,” sorry, one of my classmates asked something about our assignments. I have to call him for a bit, you don’t mind, do you?”

“No, no. of course not.”

“Hi, how can I help you?” a friendly waitress came over to their table and took out a smartphone from her pocket.

Castiel smiled and turned his attention from Charlie and her group assignment talk, “Hello, yes. I would like to order two tiramisus, one black coffee, and two water, please.”

The waitress was tapping the orders from Castiel before she lifted her face up and smiled. “Is that all?”

“Yeah. That’s all for now. Thanks.”

After the waitress walked away, Castiel noticed that Charlie was still on the phone with her classmate. Unconsciously, he started to pay attention to how many looks that Charlie had during the phone call. He had reached the third change of expression for the past three minutes when he looked to his own phone. 

Notifications.

A message from Michael.

A message from his mother.

Spam message.

Castiel opened the message from his mother, she asked what time Castiel and Charlie would arrive, and if they were joining them for dinner. While the text from Michael was him saying a casual greeting and that they would meet at the lake house soon.

On the contrary to Lucifer, Castiel found Michael  _ admirable _ . While he was also positioning himself as the crown prince of the House of Shurley, Michael was also the one who would stand up for himself from what their father would say. Only he did it smoothly, by reasoning to their father, and he even did his research or study to back up his opinion. It sounded like something that needed so much effort to do for something as simple as talking back to their father, but Michael  _ really _ did that. Once he believed in something, he would stand by it and make people see it from his point of view, while still trying to put himself in someone else’s shoes.

That was probably something that Lucifer would never do, and Castiel found it irritating.

Moreover, Michael and his wife, Mary, lived an exciting life. Michael was more as a stay at home father, while Mary is a full-time advertising Account Manager. They never once made issues about their career and roles at home, and they work as a brilliant team.

After he replied to both messages, Castiel looked at the screen for a bit while. The wallpaper that he had — or the one that Abaddon had for him — a photo of Castiel and Abaddon that was taken a few years ago. If Castiel remembered correctly, this was on Balthazar’s birthday, not long after he and Balthazar graduated from uni, which means it was more than a decade ago. 

Abaddon was wearing a wide v-neck top with puffy sleeves and had an ethnic accent stripes down on each sleeve, also a pair of jeans that were ripped on the thigh and knees. While Castiel was in his Duran Duran t-shirt that was covered in dark grey blazer jacket and dark denim. In the photo, Castiel had his head submissively leant on Abaddon’s shoulder, while she was looking all fierce and alpha.

He remembered the laughter they had after the photo was taken. Also the sex he had later in the night with some bloke he bumped to. Not the person, mind you, just the sex.

It felt like it was still recent, while in reality, it probably was a  _ lifetime _ ago. Could it be that Abaddon was right? That it was time for the twins to take life more seriously? To actually  _ plan _ their life accordingly?

If he had to be honest, Castiel never planned his life. He  _ improvised _ . That was probably one of the ways to say it. Maybe he had the privilege of money throughout school, so he didn’t put much thought about it. Then he was lucky that the freedom and absence of parents during his uni life allowed him to choose a major that he was passionate about. Which later made him be one of the best in the field that could earn him a decent living with the lifestyle that suits him.

Was that the main reason why he was so laid back in his life? 

His improvisations went well almost half of his life so that he didn’t have to worry about anything else. That the only thing that could make him irritated and felt beat was his family. Especially his father and his older brother, and he ended up avoiding it. Maybe that was why Castiel chose to sleep around, to find excitement in his life.

Was it really his time now to take life slower? To settle down?

Probably not. His life is going so well so far, Castiel  _ wouldn’t _ trade it with anything.

_ What about Dean? _

The little voice on the back of his mind suddenly made itself heard. 

Castiel sighed and opened the Contacts on his phone and searched for Dean’s name. He quietly smiled when seeing Dean wasn’t only put down his phone number, but also his email.

**Dean Winchester** **  
** +1 866-907-3235   
Mobile • Default

winchester.impala67@gmail.com   
Email • Default

And it wasn’t even a formal one.

Should Castiel text him first? He never did any of this thing before. In fact, he never has to send texts to get attention from anyone. It seemed like everything that he had with Dean was something new. And if he had to be honest, it  _ scared _ him a little bit.

“Cas?”

Apparently, Charlie had finished talking on her phone and was looking at Cas worryingly. “You have been staring at your phone for quite some time now. Is everything okay?”

“Oh, yeah. It was my Mum and Michael. Mum asked what time we would arrive and Michael just said that he’ll meet us there,” Castiel shrugged and put his phone aside. “What about you? Everything okay with your assignment?”

“Yeah, it was my classmate, we were in the same team. She asked what are my references for the assignment, just to make sure that she won’t use the same one,” Charlie shrugged. Then she broke the complimentary bread that was inside a small basket on the table, before dipping it into the bowl of olive oil and vinegar mix.

Castiel copied what Charlie did, and he loved the taste. He was about to take the second piece of bread when the waitress returned with the tiramisus and their drinks. Both of him and Charlie said thank you to the friendly lady, then they tasted the dessert. 

“Oh my God! This is really good!” he claimed. “Great job in finding this place, Charlie.”

“Cheers, Cas. Damn, this might be one of the best tiramisus I’ve ever tried,” the girl smiled widely as she licked her spoon. “Anyway, Cas. We’re two hours away from your family. Are you sure you’re ready to meet them?”

Castiel chuckled at the question, “I don’t know honestly. It’s been a while since I met them, except Abaddon and Balthazar, of course. I still feel foolish that I couldn’t be honest with my parents about who I am. On the other hand, I’m also upset about my Dad.”

She only listened to her friend, ranting about his family. Still, Charlie could understand what had been weighing Castiel all this time. “Look, Cas, this might be one hell of cliche advice, but if you keep on stopping yourself from telling your parents, you might end up hating them from something that they didn’t even do. I mean, you’re not exactly dependent on them anymore, are you? You have a life on your own.”

“I know, Charlie. I was more concerned about my Mum, really,” Castiel ate his last slice of tiramisu. “Abaddon also asked me this a few days ago, if I was planning to tell my Mum and Dad. I told her that I would definitely tell my Mum first, and maybe from there, she could help me to forward the information to my Dad.”

“That sounds like a plan,” Charlie smiled, “what about your brothers?”

“Lucifer’s the only one I have a problem with. Gabriel knew already, and Michael seemed easier to reason with, compared to Lucifer.”

Charlie raised her eyebrows on the statement, “Yeah, based on your story, I  _ could _ imagine that. Well, you have the weekend to think about it, Cas. At the same time, you can also think about what you are going to do with Dean. Maybe Abaddon and Gabriel could help you. Have you told them about Dean?”

He leant back to the cushion and lifted the coffee cup in line to his lips before he blew it softly. Castiel took a short sip to taste before answering his friend. “Well, I mentioned to Abaddon that I met Dean, but it was only in passing. Not as detailed as I told you.”

“Well, now you can get a second opinion or even a third from Gabriel,” Charlie said lightly as she opened the water bottle and poured it to the two glasses. “I think we also need water if we want to have this wine for the road.”

“Yeah, which reminds me, I think we should ask for the check now, if we want to arrive before late,” Castiel put down the coffee cup and turned on his seat to look for the waitress who helped them with the dessert before. “Anyway, I saw a convenience store next door. I think it would be better if we bought the water there, and some snacks.”

“You  _ still _ wanna munch, Cas?” Charlie gave Castiel a look that can only be described by her friend as a look of judgement. 

“Why not? It’s still two hours to go,” Castiel shrugged after he managed to call the waitress. “Hi, can we get the check, please?”

While they were waiting for the check to arrive, Castiel and Charlie talked a little bit about the tablet project that they were working on. They couldn’t help to be proud of the team, especially Castiel as the leader, that they could have an extra few days of deadline ahead. That was why Castiel and Charlie asked Naomi if, for this weekend, the team could have a break from working on the tablet since they both wouldn’t be in the city as well. Naomi was also surprised by the progress that she gave permission instantly.

After they calculated the shares on their dinner payment, Charlie handed her part of the cash to Castiel and told him that she would go next door to buy the water and snack for the rest of their road trip. Castiel mentioned the snacks that he wanted and told Charlie that he’d bring the wine bottle. 

Castiel put Charlie’s money into his wallet, then walked to the cashier to proceed the payment with his credit card. As he waited for the staff to process, his mobile phone chimed, notifying him that he received a text message. When he took out his phone, Castiel saw that it was from Abaddon.

**Cassie, what time you and Charlie  
arrive? Gabriel’s been asking for you. **

_ Oh, right! _

He had forgotten _ entirely _ that Gabriel was texting him this afternoon before Charlie came to meet him. Castiel quickly typed the reply to his sister.

**We’re halfway, just finished dinner and  
about to continue. See you guys in   
2 hours or so?**

After he tapped Send, the cashier staff handed him the EDC machine where he should input his card’s PIN number. Castiel typed the number that he memorised well, then waited for the receipt. Didn’t take long for the whole payment process to be finished, and he could step out from the restaurant to head to his car. Charlie came out from the convenience store, carrying a paper bag filled with bottles of water and snacks.

“I thought you judge me for still wanting to munch?” Castiel cackled.

“I can’t help it, they got my favourite flavour of chips.”

Her reply made Castiel roll his eyes playfully as he opened the car door and got inside to help Charlie with the door. There were a few minutes of planning where to put the wine bottle, and which snack to have  _ first _ before they actually left to continue their journey. It might be because they were a bit tired and full, the rest of the drive was filled more with the songs (still) from Charlie’s Spotify, and a light conversation about films of TV series between them. No talk about real life for the next two hours or so. 

“There it is,” Castiel announced when he saw the house that he knew really well from the summers he spent with his family. 

The two-storey house was entirely made of bricks, and on the second storey rows of windows could be seen on the columns that showed where the rooms are. The porch was heightened well above the land, there were brick pillars that held the roof and created magnificent “windows” that showed the beautiful vista of the lake in front of the house. 

“Holy brick house, Batman,” Charlie mumbled, “this house is fuckin’ beautiful, Cas.”

“I know,” Cas replied as he opened the boot of the car and started to take the bags out. “Honestly, the idea of coming back to this house was another reason for me to attend this party. You’ll love it even more inside. Come on.”

Castiel put the wine bottle inside his duffle bag, he told Charlie that they might need it on one of the nights there, being under the same roof with Lucifer. He smiled when he saw Charlie didn’t object. They both climbed the stone stairs and entered the house. The first room they saw was the entry hall with stairs on their right that lead to the bedrooms on the second storey. On the left side was the living room with two entrances that was separated by a wall. Castiel put his bags on the floor, on the bottom of the stairs. Then he looked to the door across him that connected the entrance with the living room.

Surprisingly, the house was quiet. Although Castiel could see that some coats and jackets were hanging on one of the walls. Some were being thrown to the vacant chairs and couches in the living room. So, obviously, they arrived on the  _ correct _ date and time. As it should be, since half of his family had texted him and asked his whereabouts since he left from New Jersey.

“Hello?” 

He broke the silence and signed for Charlie to follow him to the back, where the dining room is. As they got closer to the dining room, he could finally hear chatter, laughter, and the clinking of plates and dining utensils came from that direction. Surely enough, as Castiel saw the dining room, he also saw his family exchanging laughter and conversations. 

Before he stepped in further into the dining room, Castiel turned to Charlie and whispered, “Now, remember, my parents’ names are Charles  _ Shurley _ and Rowena  _ MacLeod _ . You can use either of those and not Novak. That’s my middle name.”

“Uh, okay,” Charlie nodded, “Shurley and MacLeod. Got it.”

“Good. Thanks,” Castiel showed his two thumbs then shifted on his heels to head to the dining room, “Hey, guys. We’re here.”

The buzzing of chatter in the dining room suddenly quieted down comically, before followed by a surprising choir of “Castiel” and “Cassie” that came from his family. Also an additional call of “Charlie” that came from Abaddon, Gabriel, and Balthazar. His family greeted him with hugs, kisses, and sweet words. As Castiel expected, his father and Lucifer were  _ still _ on their chair, they only smiled and nodded at him. Of course, he returned the smile with an awkward one. 

“Cassie, dear, are you going to introduce your friend to us?” 

His mother, Lady Shurley, Rowena MacLeod elbowed her youngest son on the sides before she hooked her arm on Castiel’s. When she saw her son looking at her, Rowena nudged him with a smile to Charlie’s direction, who was chatting gleefully with Abaddon and Balthazar.

“Oh yeah, right,” Castiel led his mother closer to the group, “Mum, this is my best friend, Charlie Bradbury. I honestly  _ never _ asked what Charlie stands for, so I think I couldn’t give you more information about that. We worked on a project together from her campus.”

There was a nervous smile that was evident on Charlie’s face, even though she was there as a best friend — not as a lover. “Hello, Mrs MacLeod, thank you very much for letting me join your party. It was Charlene, by the way, the Charlie.”

“You’re most welcome, darling,” Rowena replied in her thick Scottish accent, “I hope my wee boy didn’t cause you any trouble at work.”

“Mum.”

Charlie’s mouth made an ‘o’ before she finally answered, “Oh, no, no. On the contrary, it was us who caused Cas trouble. He’s our team leader, so we have to help and report everything to him, and he’s our favourite leader.”

“That’s  _ not _ helping, Charlie.”

It just dawned to Castiel that this weekend he would have  _ two _ red-headed ladies who were ready to tease him mercilessly. On the other hand, this situation also gave him a little encouragement. It might be alright for him to come out to his mother this weekend, especially with his little support group who are currently  _ all _ under this roof.

Rowena then hooked her other arm on Charlie’s, and she led both Castiel and Charlie to the vacant chairs on the dining table, “So, have you both had dinner? How was the journey here? Did Castiel drive safely?”

“Mum!”

“I still remember how you drive, my Wayward Angel,” Rowena replied to Castiel’s protest and earned a chuckle from Charlie.

Castiel rolled his eyes before answered, “Yeah, we had dinner. Charlie found this beautiful Italian place on the way, it looked so genuine, Mum. I think you’ll love it.”

Next to his mother, Castiel saw his father and Lucifer were involved in a deep conversation. The one kind that would take all of your attention away from your surroundings. He noticed that Charlie was showing and talking about the Italian cafe they visited. As much as Castiel wanted to avoid his father, he knew that he just couldn’t do it, especially with them being on the same side of the dining table. He was about to say hi to his father when Castiel felt a hand weighing his shoulder.

“You twins really have to surprise the family at the same time, do you?” it was Michael.

Castiel got up from his seat and gave his big brother a hug, “Hey, how’re you, Michael? Where are the kids?”

“I’m good, and my children are playing upstairs with Raphaela’s kids, and Luci’s,” Michael ran his fingers on his light brown hair. Unlike Lucifer, who worked as an attorney, Michael is an architect, and he was really passionate about his career. “You  _ do _ know that Abaddon also brought someone here right, Cas?”

“Uh, yeah, she told me,” Castiel looked to Abaddon who had stood behind Michael’s chair, “So, where’s  _ my _ surprise, sister mine?”

Abaddon laughed at Castiel’s words, “He went out before you came to answer his phone.”

“So, who is this guy? Why didn’t you tell me about him?” Castiel turned his body to talk to his sister, and he could feel Charlie was leaning his chin on his shoulder. “You owe me a story, you know. Loads of story.”

Again, Abaddon could only respond with a laugh to Castiel’s words, and he could hear and feel a slight tone of happiness in her laughter. “We’re just like you and Charlie, Cassie. We’re just good friends from school, and apparently, we go to the same gym. He said that he didn’t have any plan for this weekend, so I asked him if he wanted to join me for a weekend getaway with my family. He said, why not. That’s all.”

Castiel squinted as Abaddon finished her story. He knew that his sister had that charm that could make any man follow her words, how absurd it would be, so that story could be a legit one. But Castiel didn’t know that she had upgraded her skill this much, that she could get someone to go with her to a family thing. So he decided to interrogate her again later.

“Ah, there he is!”

Castiel followed the direction of Abaddon’s eyes to someone who just entered from the door that led to the direction of the lake. It was a tall figure that looked familiar to Castiel, too familiar that he could feel his heart start to beat faster inside his chest. Then the tall man lifted up his face and straightaway met Castiel’s eyes, and there was a visible  _ shock _ in the other man’s eyes as he saw him. 

Castiel could feel the insides of his stomach drop viciously to his feet as he prayed that he was dreaming of seeing the figure before him. A figure with all the features that he recognised very well.

The  _ dark brown _ hair. The  _ bright green _ eyes. The  _ freckled _ face. The  _ broad _ shoulders.

_ No.  _

“Cassie, this is Dean Winchester.”


	10. The Conspiracy of Gabriel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you ... The family of Charles Shurley and Rowena Macleod.

"Dean, that's my twin brother, Castiel."

_ Why is he here? _

Castiel's mind couldn't stop asking the question as he and Dean exchanged stares, and none of them started to talk. He didn't even realise that Charlie was gripping his hand  _ tightly _ to 'wake' him from the trance. Still, Castiel wondered how in the world did Dean,  _ his _ Dean, could show up at this very place where  _ his _ family all gathered together. Moreover, he was here with Abaddon,  _ his _ Abaddon.  _ How _ did this happen? Did he miss anything?

"Hey, Castiel."

Finally, it was Dean who spoke first.

"Hello, Dean."

He didn't get the chance to say another word to Dean because his father had risen from his chair to welcome his family. "Well, with Castiel and his plus one arriving, I think we have everybody here now. Everyone, thank you for your time to spend your weekend here with this old man on his birthday." 

Charles Shurley's words were greeted with laughter that came from his family. 

"Amara, Balthazar, Raphaela, and Michaela, and the little ones, how lovely of you all to drop by. Thank you. I hope we can gather more often in the future," Charles placed a hand on his chest, and his expression softened as he addressed his sister and her family.

Castiel turned to his cousins' direction, Balthazar was smiling at him, and somehow it calmed Castiel. On each of Balthazar's sides were his two adopted Black sisters, Raphaela and Michaela. 

Castiel always admired her aunt, probably more than to his own father. Amara Shurley was a single mother of three, all were adopted children, she decided that she didn't need a man to live with. She has more in her life, and her heart, that she can share with others. So she adopted Balthazar, Raphaela, and Michaela as her own. 

Today, there they were — all grown up to be decent people who loved their works and their family. 

Balthazar worked as a volunteer at the Asian Cultural Foundation, since he was passionate to learn many cultures of the world. Raphaela is an environmental lawyer and was quite a shark in her field. At the same time, Michaela is a successful businesswoman who worked in a very inclusive environment with her college friends. Even with the three of them having shiny careers and lifestyles, Aunt Amara always kept them grounded. 

Castiel almost missed his father's welcome speech as he adored Michaela perfectly shaped facial bones. Thankfully, Michael  _ noticed _ that he wasn't paying attention and quietly returned Castiel back to the dining room by resting his arm around the little brother's shoulder. He looked up to his big brother with a thankful look before he turned his attention back to his father. Also, Lucifer, since he was in the same direction.

He saw Lucifer smiling at him, but there was something in Lucifer's smile that always made Castiel feel uneasy. It was a smile from someone who knew something and would definitely use the information for his gain — a smile that fitted his profession as a lawyer, a criminal lawyer even. 

The thought of having his own big brother defending him in a court always made Castiel shivered right to the tail of his spine. He'd rather have someone else that he didn't know at all to do the work. Or might as well pleading guilty.

"Right, so it's getting late. It has been an exciting day for us, even though the fun has just started. Rowena and I will get some rest. For all of you, well, you can do what you want. Just don't destroy my house."

There was a train of laughter that followed by goodnight bide from everyone. 

After his parents retreated to their room, something hit Castiel's mind. Where will he and Charlie sleep?

"Hey, Abbie," Castiel called his sister, who was already talking to Dean — to his uneasiness, "have you got your room?" 

Right after he ended the question, Castiel regretted that he asked it with Dean in proximity. What if she replied that she  _ and _ Dean shared a room? What if Abaddon, cluelessly, said that she'd share a room with Charlie and Castiel would  _ bunk _ with Dean?

"Oh yeah, we talked about that, Mum and I. Well, you know Dad and his  _ religious _ thingy, right?" Abaddon made a finger quote when she said that, and to her surprise, it made Michael laugh. "So, I will share a room with Charlie. You, Cassie, will be in the living room with Dean, Gabriel, and Balthazar. Dad said both sofa beds should fit for you guys. Is that okay?"

Castiel made a quick note in his mind to go to a heart doctor for a check-up after this weekend is over. He was concerned — highly concerned — for that particular organ since he was quite sure that it's been working extra hard since the moment he stepped into this house. 

"Fine by me," he turned to Dean as if challenging the taller man to say something that would resemble a disagreement.

"Sounds good to me, Cas," he smiled — and somehow irritated Castiel more. "Gabriel had agreed with this arrangement as well."

"What do I agree on now?" 

Just like an appearance in a sitcom, Gabriel bounced into the dining room with a glass of whisky in hand and took place next to Abaddon. "Hey, Cassie, I've got burnt cheesecake saved for you and Charlie," he said and pointed to the fridge with the glass.

_ Finally!  _

Castiel knew that his face must have shifted significantly from stressed to beaming with joy. "Come on, Charlie, time for you to try Gabriel's work, he's a baking artist," he tapped Charlie's thigh as a sign for her to follow him to the kitchen. "Anyone else want a slice?"

"No, Cas, all for you, the last couple arrived," Michael replied.

There was a spark of  _ mischievous _ joy inside Castiel's chest (honestly, he  _ really _ should go to a heart specialist after this weekend). There was a slight, but visible, change in Dean's expression when Michael —  _ cheesily _ — called him and Charlie as "couple". 

"Great! Oh, by the way, she's my best friend," Castiel slung his arm lightly around Charlie's shoulders, "not my girlfriend, Michael. Sorry."

" _ What? _ Hold up."

The uncomfortable shiver returned to Castiel's spine.

"So you both, you twins, brought someone here to Dad's party, who  _ aren't _ your lovers?" there was a noticeable sneer in Lucifer's voice, and smile, when he asked that question. He definitely  _ knew _ what he asked would push a particular button on his younger siblings, even only a little bit. 

"Not that I object, mind you," he continued, "but I found it interesting that you both had the  _ same _ thought of bringing a 'best friend' to meet the whole family."

It was the kind of question that Castiel knew very well. How he and Abaddon were still living their lives as single people, and available. While at the same time, not-so-subtly making them both too available for Dean and Charlie. Lucifer had been doing that since the twins finished uni. Castiel was about to answer his big brother, but to his surprise, his intention was cut. By Michael.

"Drop it, Lucifer," Michael said as he turned and faced his twin brother. "We never said anything about  _ having _ to bring a significant other here. After all, if they think Dean and Charlie are worthy friends to be introduced to us, why not?"

Right after he finished his response, there was a dramatic slow clap coming from the kitchen's direction. It was Gabriel, who had joined Castiel and Charlie there to help them with the cheesecake. "Perfectly said, Michael. Come on, Lu, just think of it as something that you'd do when you're a kid. I remember you took your friend when we were going for a weekend getaway here. Anyway, Dean and Charlie are our guests, don't be rude, will you?"

"Hey, just curious," Lucifer shrugged and leant back to his chair.

"Well, if you're curious, Lu," Abaddon steps forward and half dragging Dean behind him, "and I assumed you weren't here yet when I introduced Dean to the family. Dean is my friend from uni. We shared some classes together. Right?"

Dean smiled — a smile that made Castiel's heart rate just  _ spiked _ — before supporting Abaddon's answer, "Although weirdly enough, we first met at the campus gym, instead of classes. I think we became friends quickly because we're the ones with, erm, more age than other students, yeah?" 

"There was another one, but he was more of a teacher's pet, so we don't hang out much," Abaddon shrugged. "Dean's studying Masters for Sports Medicine, by the way. That's why we shared some classes."

"What did Abaddon tell you that makes you interested in meeting the family, Dean?" Michael asked and looked genuinely interested. 

"Well, that was an interesting question," Dean sat on the chair across Michael, "it was when Abaddon asked if I had any plan for this weekend. I usually spend my weekends with my brother and his girlfriend, movie night or whatever. But, for this weekend, Abaddon got lucky, my little brother and his girlfriend are going on a staycation, so I thought ‘why not’?"

Castiel could swear that Dean was  _ intentionally _ looking at him, all the way in the kitchen, when he told the story about his regular meet-up with his brother. It reflected the moment when they first met, when Dean tells Castiel that it was a good thing to be close with siblings, even after growing up.

"Actually, I didn't tell Dean that this is going to be Dad's birthday party. I only told him that I'm gonna go to a lake house with my family and he's welcome to join," Abaddon took her jacket off and put it on the chair. "Oh, I also said that I have a brother who's a pro in baking, including pies."

"Love me some pies this weekend, Gabriel," Dean made gun fingers to Gabriel's direction and received two thumbs up as a reply.

"So, there you go, Lu, the story of how I took Dean to meet you all," Abaddon smiled to her family.

He might be nodded in content with Abaddon's answer. However, the suspicious smile is still obviously there, on Lucifer's face. "Interesting meet-cute backstory, Abaddon and Dean. What about you two?" he turned to Castiel and Charlie, "Mind sharing your adorable story, and  _ maybe _ something else?"

"Sure," Charlie responded, "Cas and I met through an archaeological project from my campus. He's one of the few scholars who can translate Enochian, and my campus just unearthed these tablets from Indonesia, that's almost entirely in Enochian. So, one thing led to another, Cas and I worked together, and we became close friends."

Michaela suddenly rushed to her cousin and bumped him with a loving embrace. "Cassie! I'm so glad that you got the work that you love! I remember how excited you were when you found out about Enochian at uni. He was so cute," the statuesque woman planted a kiss on the man's cheek as she ended her praise.

"Aww, thank you, Michaela," Castiel returned the hug from his cousin. "Continue your story, Charlie."

"Oh, right. Well, since I don't have any family back in New Jersey, I considered Cas as my big brother." She chuckled when he felt an arm slung around her, followed with a kiss on top of her head. Then a large man-paw pat her head, as if Charlie is a small kid. "And I can't be together with Cas, because he's not exactly my  _ type _ ."

Again, Lucifer let out a chuckle that was polished with a sneer, " _ How _ is that possible? Cassie's a fine-looking man, and he worked a good job. Right, Cassie?"

Charlie leant forward on the kitchen island that was made of marble and a Delft tile-styled painting of Rhodes Island map, "Well, what's  _ between _ his legs is not my type."

There was a roar of laughter that mixed with various kinds of "Ooh!" coming from the rest of the Shurley family after Charlie said that. Meanwhile, Charlie and Castiel laughed and did a high five.

"Well, there you go, Lu, Not every man-woman relationship has to be a romantic one. Also, not every relationship has to be a heterosexual one," Michael smiled to Charlie and Castiel as he said this. "Hey, Gabe, I think I want some of that cheesecake you made."

Gabriel took the dessert out from the fridge, "Aw, do I have to serve it to you?" he started to cut slices for his siblings and Charlie. As he handed two plates of cake to Charlie, Gabriel whispered to her, "Charlie, that was really awesome of you to stand up against Lucifer. He can really be  _ that _ annoying if you let him."

Charlie took the plates from Gabriel, "Yeah, Castiel had told me about him. So, I think, why not." She then took one to Michael, who thanked her with a smile. She noticed that Castiel's cousins were giving her encouragement smiles when she walked back to Gabriel and Castiel. 

"It's gonna be a fun weekend, eh?"

The Shurley children — the younger ones — were enjoying Gabriel's delicious burnt cheesecake while exchanging stories of what they've been doing since the last time they met. Balthazar joined the talk while offering everyone whisky. Raphaela said that she got some reading to do for her next case, and Michaela is going to bed. She needed the rest since she just returned from Adelaide, South Australia, yesterday.

"Cassie, Charlie, have you got your bags from the car?" Abaddon asked, "Dean and I are gonna go get ours."

"Uh, we have, and we still have to open the couches, right?" he turned to Gabriel and tried so hard not to sound like asking for help. Thankfully Gabriel was busy with the dessert in his mouth, so all he could do was nodding. "Yeah, we're good, thanks."

Abaddon smiled and headed outside with Dean to get their bags. 

He waited until he was sure that the youngest sister was entirely out of their listening range, and Michael was busy chatting with Balthazar. After he was sure, Gabriel then turned to Castiel and smiled widely when he saw his baby brother had a  _ worried _ look on his face. "So, Cassie, mind explaining what happened before?"

"W-what do you mean?"

"Where should I start?" Gabriel let out a sing-song voice and smiled even more cheekily at his little brother's direction. "Your shocked face when you saw Dean? The staring contest with  _ sexual _ tension? Or the fact that you're  _ avoiding _ him now?"

Castiel could only blink owlishly at the questions being thrown at him. On one hand, he was surprised that Gabriel was  _ actually _ paying attention to his reactions since he saw Dean Winchester in this house. On the other hand, he needed a good answer, that would avoid further interrogation from his big brother. For now. 

"Well, I was surprised, honestly. Abbadon didn't say anything of being close to someone, let alone as a good friend. Or even that she would  _ bring _ that person here," not entirely a lie, but it was believable enough. At least according to Castiel. "And I'm not avoiding, thank you very much. There were just so many people here, and I'm tired from working  _ and _ driving"

Gabriel was now eyeing Castiel suspiciously, he pointed at Castiel with the spoon in his hand. "You know, I don't know if you were telling the truth or not, but your answer made sense.  _ A lot _ , apparently. So, she didn't tell you anything about this Dean?"

"Nope," Castiel shook his head and pretended to be annoyed, "you can ask Charlie or Balthy. We went out quite regularly, and Abbadon  _ never _ brought Dean. In fact, last time she went out with people from her class, Charlie and I bumped into her at a diner, no Dean. Or maybe not yet, since they're going to a pub."

"Hmm," this time the spoon was placed just outside of Gabriel's mouth, it could be seen clearly on his face that Gabriel is calculating something. If not planning. "Suspicious this Dean person is. Maybe I should do some investigation on him."

"What?" Castiel, again, was genuinely surprised by his big brother's words.

"Come on, Cassie, aren't you curious?" Gabriel cut another slice for Charlie, then to his plate. "I mean, at least you brought Charlie, we've known her. She's amazing,"

"Aw, thanks, Gabe," Charlie smiled as Gabriel landed a peck of a kiss on the side of her head. "I agree with Gabe, Cas, maybe it would be fun to find out a thing or two about this Dean," she turned to Castiel with a smile, that she knew would be  _ more _ than innocent for her best friend.

As if telepathic, Castiel could hear Charlie's voice behind her smile, telling him that finding out things about Dean might also be  _ advantageous _ for Castiel. He then sighed, since he knew that it would be wise to succumb when Charlie and Gabriel had agreed on the same thing. Convincing them to do the otherwise would take much more effort. Much, much more. "Fine. But, I'd think we better do it the old school way. You know, by conversing with him, instead of invading his privacy."

"Interesting idea," Gabriel put the spoon that was on his lips to the empty plate, "and since you're the smooth one,  _ you _ do the talking!"


	11. Over Beer and Wine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Castiel had a heart-to-heart with Charlie. And Dean. Sort of.

"Hey, you okay?" 

Castiel turned to find Charlie standing in front of him, she looked fresh from the shower and offered him a can of beer. Or maybe it was Charlie who found him sitting on the swing in the backyard, trying to process what had happened since he and Charlie arrived at this lake house. 

"Yeah. Thanks, Charlie," he received the beer with a sigh. Castiel opened and took a sip before he went to silent mode again. He felt a soft jolt next to him when Charlie joined him on the swing, and she started to sway back and forth slowly. 

By now, Castiel was quite sure that Gabriel would realise he was avoiding Dean. Since they finished setting up the sofa beds in the living room, Castiel quickly made his way to the showers. He didn't even wait for the other three men to finish putting on the pillowcases or getting blankets. After he finished refreshing himself, he put on his sleeping t-shirt and shorts, then quickly made his way to the back porch. He needed some time to calm himself before having Dean in the vicinity of his sleeping area. Or maybe he avoided seeing Dean and Abaddon being adorable together.

He knew that it was a jerk move from him towards Dean. But being close to Dean, especially after Castiel knew that Dean came here by Abaddon's request, somehow made him uncomfortable. 

From the times he spent with Dean — both of them — he was quite sure that Dean was queer, at least a bisexual. He even foolishly believed that there was something to look forward to from the time they talked for a long time at the park, that they even exchanged numbers. Unusual for him, Castiel also thought that there might be something that he could look forward to from knowing Dean. From the way he treated Castiel from the very first moment they met to their meet up at the park. Including the number exchange. Apparently, Dean Winchester was just a really thoughtful person.

Another thing for Castiel, it was Abaddon. 

Maybe if it was someone else, Castiel wouldn't care much. He would just make his move and make it all stealth and innocent, and he might get what he wanted before the weekend is over. But, he just couldn't if it was Abaddon. She was way too precious for him. 

How ironic is it that Castiel couldn't get Dean, because he was going out with his _twin_ sister?

"So much for being smitten, eh?"

Charlie leant her head to the gloomy man next to her, "I'm so sorry, Cas. Such an unfortunate coincidence, isn't it?"

The question that came from Charlie made Castiel smile and sighed. "Maybe if I took her seriously when she talked about finding someone to go steady, she would tell me about Dean, and I wouldn't think much about him when we met at the park."

"Hey, don't be like that," Charlie hugged her best friend, "I know this might be hard for you at the moment, but maybe now you have even more reason to investigate him. You have to make sure that he's gonna be that man who's worthy for your sister."

The blue-eyed man laughed bitterly when he heard Charlie's words, "I guess. It's funny, yeah? The first person I ever took seriously, and of all people I could lose him to. It was my twin sister."

"You really like him, don't you?" Charlie let Castiel have his turn to place his head on her shoulder as she leant on him. She held Castiel's hand, entwined their fingers together. 

Castiel scoffed at the question, "Well, just a little bit more than the others." 

"I never saw you this bummed from the idea of losing someone."

This time there was a long pause before he replied to Charlie, "I don't even know I could feel this way towards someone, Charlie."

"Aww, child, you're just growing up, that's all," the petite girl wrapped her arms around Castiel and snuggled his floofy hair. They swung leisurely while enjoying the comforting silence between them.

Castiel then sat up straight and turned his face to Charlie, "Thank you for coming here with me, Charlie. Even though the support might be a bit different than what I planned."

"I know, right? I'm sorry, man, but it seems like this weekend will be _very unexpected_ for you," Charlie slapped Castiel's arm. The air between them switched, as fast as turning your palm, from mellow to playful. "I started to think that the Lucifer situation was not as painful as you mentioned. Michael and your cousins are fantastic for standing up against him before. Also, Michaela is _mighty hot_!"

Castiel barked a burst of laughter, "Really, Charlie? From all the mess that happened before, you got time to eye my cousin?" 

"There's nothing wrong in studying everyone you're gonna spend the weekend with," Charlie shrugged innocently, and made Castiel laugh again. 

"I never talked about relationships with Michaela, but if she was into girls, you're more than welcome to make a move on her."

"Excellent," Charlie did a Mr Burns impression, then she looked at his friend, who was still smiling even though the sad look is still visible on his face. "Are you feeling better now, Cas?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Charlie."

"Great. Now, tell me where your parents keep the booze, I need some drink, and I bet you do too," she practically jumped off the swing and helped Castiel to stand, before taking him inside the house.

Castiel opened the small wine rack next to the fridge and took out one of the Chateau Bordeaux wine bottles. He knew that his parents wouldn't miss it if one bottle was missing from their collection. He opened the bottle and inhaled the aroma before bringing it to the kitchen island. While at the same time, Charlie practically raid each cabinet looking for wine glasses. 

"The one before the fridge, Charlie."

"Ugh, finally! Thanks, Cas," she opened the one that was closest to the fridge and took out two glasses. With a wiggle, she went around the kitchen island to sit across her friend and put both glasses down. Waiting for Castiel to pour down the liquor.

They had almost finished the first glass when Castiel's eyes caught Dean was walking from the bathroom direction and approaching them. In a way, he was grateful that Charlie asked where the alcoholic drinks were before they came into the house. At least the effect after he drank the wine would disguise the blushing shades and heated sensation on his face. 

Both Dean and Charlie looked at each other before noticing Dean.

"Hey, Cas," Dean Winchester started and smiled at the dark-haired man, then turned to Charlie. "Hey, Charlie. Um, mind if I joined you guys?"

"Hello, Dean. Yeah. Yeah, sure," Castiel could feel that his mouth was almost refusing to work with his brain. There was also a possibility that his mind was too busy wondering if Dean noticed that Castiel was avoiding him. If so, then it might forget to send proper speaking commands to Castiel's mouth. "Uh, you want a glass, Dean?"

"Sure. Thanks, Cas," Dean replied and looked directly into Castiel's eyes. However, he didn't get a long time to admire the deep cerulean orbs before him, since the other man had turned to get another wine glass. He waited patiently as Castiel poured the wine into the new glass and pushed it to him. "Cheers."

The three of them made a toast then sip the wine, and each of them made an awkward hum of appreciation for the wine. After exchanging smiles, they took another sip, and an even more awkward silence covering the air followed between them. 

Dean tapped and played with his glass for a few moments before finally talking, "Cas, I think I owe you an explanation."

"I think you do."

The way both Dean and Charlie suddenly froze in their seat was unmistakable evidence that neither of them expected Castiel to throw a sharp and quick answer. Moreover, even Castiel himself was taken aback from his own response and looked down to his glass. The tension in the air suddenly became significantly thicker, that even a mere knife couldn't cut it.

"Right, uh-" Dean softly swirled his wine before he ran his hand across his hair to the back of his neck. His face was blushing, either from the drink or from nervousness, and his green olive coloured eyes kept on darting to Castiel's direction. Even though the other man didn't realise it.

"Oh, right, I should leave," Charlie took another serve of the Chateau Bordeaux, and almost filled her glass up before retreating to the dining table.

"Thanks, Charlie," Dean smiled at her. After he was sure that Charlie was out of reach, he turned to Castiel again. He took a deep breath before he finally found Castiel's eyes again, and Dean felt as if he was absorbed into the soothing blue orbs. 

"Cas," he started in a lower and softer voice than he intended to, "I honestly didn't know Abaddon is your sister, twin sister even."

Castiel knew that the statement would come from Dean sooner or later in their talk, sometime this weekend. But, he still could feel a slight discomfort in his chest when he finally heard it. 

He blinked and broke eye contact with Dean as Castiel collected himself and tried so hard to make his voice as stable and straightforward as he could. "How long have you been dating my sister?" 

Probably, just like Dean, Castiel didn't expect the voice he produced would be _that_ low and soft.

Dean ran his hand on the back of his head again, "I, uh, I know you're not gonna like the sound of this, uh, a few weeks."

"Oh."

_Fuck._

He could feel the dizziness came as he heard the answer, and it wasn't from the wine that he had.

When he saw Castiel didn't give any response, Dean continued while tapping his glass, "The thing is Abaddon and I never said that we're exclusive. We, uh, we're still open in the relationship, although we go out regularly. I know Abaddon sleeps around, and I also see other people. I met _you_." 

_Fuck, why is this so hard?_

"Yeah," Castiel replied shortly, although he noticed that from the way Dean talked and how he sounded, the situation between him, Abaddon, and Castiel also caused a burden for Dean. "I had a good time talking with you, Dean. Both times."

A smile showed on Dean's face when he heard the other man's answer, what he didn't hear was the under the breath swearing from Castiel when Dean's smile was showing. "Same, Cas. Your stories are interesting and exciting, it was also really amusing seeing you telling stories about things that you're passionate about. Although I should realise that some of your stories matched Abaddon's."

"Oh? Which part?"

"Douchey big brother," Dean's answer made both of them laugh. 

However, soon after the laughter faded, another awkward silence followed between them. Both men then tried to fill it by pouring another serve of wine to their glasses. For the next few seconds, the only sound that was heard from the kitchen table area was the clinking of glasses to the marble surface.

"Dean," Castiel broke the silence, "I would've never, you know, if I knew you were with my sister."

"I know, Cas. Same with me, if I knew you were Abaddon's brother, I'd tell you right away when we met."

Another silence fell between them, and Castiel was glad that Charlie had taken refuge at the dining table. He would feel so bad for Charlie if she was still with them, listening to this painfully awkward conversation. 

"Cas, I-"

"Oh, here you both are! Getting to know each other, I see, over a bottle of wine."

Abaddon's cheerful voice ambushed the heavy situation between the two men. If Castiel had to be honest, he almost threw the glass in his hand out of surprise.

"Dude, don't do that," Castiel snarked to his sister, then on the next moment he knew that he had to provide a good explanation of the sombre situation between him and Dean. "Yeah, I was showing Dean where we are in this Dutch-style map. Honestly, when did Mum and Dad buy this thing? It didn't look like this the last time we were here. Same as your hair, it didn't look _that_ fiery before. Did you just dye it?"

"Ha! As silly as it sounds, I miss my natural hair colour, but I'm not that patient to wait for my hair to grow and cut out the brown parts. So I used this amazing Asian hair dye shampoo that I found online. It's _brilliant_ , yeah?" Abaddon let out a fake evil laugh while waving her brand new flaming red hair.

"What is the laughter for?" Dean asked cheekily.

"Oh, shush," Abaddon joined Castiel and Dean as she sat on one of the stools, "By the way, I think Mum and Dad worked on some parts of the house. You should see the bedrooms, Cassie, I _barely_ recognised them. Then again, the last time we were here was almost _three_ years ago."

"That's a good point. Wow, it really has been _that_ long since we were here," Castiel smiled dreamily as he tried to memorise the fun times he had the last time he was at the lake house. "By the way, Charlie, hey, why don't you join us?" 

Abaddon smiled widely when she saw Charlie walk towards them, "Charlie, I didn't know you were there!"

"Abbie!" Charlie raised her wine glass that now was half full. "Sorry, I was talking to this girl, and i don't want these boys to peek," Charlie made her way to Castiel's side and joined him. "Wow! Love your hair, sister! Ginger power!"

"Hail to the ginger queens!" Abaddon high-fived with the other red-haired girl. Then she rolled her eyes with a laugh as the two men there released frustrated groans in unison, "What? By the way, Charlie, I think you should know that Dean here also loves _Star Wars_ and _Star Trek_. And probably everything geeky that you love."

"No way!" Charlie's face beamed, then she bounced to the other side of the kitchen island and tapped Abaddon's arm repeatedly. "Move, woman, I have found my kin. Okay, Dean, which trilogy of _Star Wars_ that you liked the best?"

Dean turned his chair towards Charlie, " _What?_ Seriously, _that_ was your question? Fine, if you asked for trilogies, the original is still the best. And if you asked about the best film post-Disney, i would say _Rogue One_."

Charlie was practically squealing when she heard Dean's answer. They both then quickly were deep in discussion about space sci-fi films and series that neither Castiel nor Abaddon had any experience of. 

After five minutes or so, the analysis about _Game of Thrones_ ' series finale between Charlie and Dean had to be cut short. Abaddon _finally_ got bored and started to nag Charlie to retreat to their room. The geeky girl then rose from her seat and told Dean that they should continue their discussion in the morning. Then Abaddon dragged her to their room. 

Once again, the two men in the kitchen were trapped in heavy silence.

Castiel poured more wine into his glass, then he swirled it lazily before taking a drink. He actually still remembered that Dean was about to say something to him before Abaddon came. Yet, he didn't know if he wanted to hear the rest of the sentence or not. 

"How are your boys?"

Even though he knew that probably wasn't the question that Dean wanted to ask before, Castiel couldn't hide that he almost jumped in surprise when Dean suddenly broke the silence. "They're good. I have a friend babysitting for them, while she also housesits for me this weekend."

"That's really nice of her," commented Dean, who was supported by Castiel's nod. 

Then _more_ silence came.

As if he didn't have enough thought about his situation with Dean, Castiel's uncooperative brain suddenly reminded him that he had an investigation task from Gabriel. He still remembered the enjoyable conversation that he had with Dean last week. Still, it would be a lie if he said that that was enough information about the gorgeous green-eyed man before him. Castiel tried _so hard_ to look for a conversation topic that wouldn't be too suspicious or gave an impression that he wanted to know more about Dean. 

"So, you're close with your little brother, Dean?" Castiel attempted to make his question sound casual, with an additional sincere smile. "Now that I think of it, that might be why you looked pleased when I told you that I had a meeting with my sister on a Saturday morning."

"Oh yeah, that really reminded me of my brother and I, meeting up once a month to catch up. His name is Samuel, and he worked in New York," there was a note of pride in Dean's voice when he gave the answer. "My brother and I, we, uh, we were close since we were little. Our parents died when I was six, and Sammy was two, then a friend of the family took us in and raised both of us as their own. When I was at uni, I could take a part-time job, so I can help Sammy with his school expenses, also so we won't burden our foster parents further. Sammy received a scholarship to study Law at Stanford, and now he's a Mr Lawyer in New York City."

The story made Castiel smile, and he felt a warmth inside his chest. It was clear why Dean was so proud of his little brother. They started out life in an unfortunate situation, then with the help of people who love them and from their strong will, the Winchester brothers managed to create a stable situation for them. 

Maybe that was the reason why Dean was so kind to him, even though they just met. He was raised by good people, and he basically paid it forward by treating others right.

"Cas, I'm really sorry about … us."

And the moment was _gone_.

"Well, Abaddon is a brilliant woman," Castiel responded flatly.

"I, uh, I was … I just ended a long, long and messy relationship, and I met Abaddon at the gym. We talked and found that we have some things in common. Next thing we knew, we got close," Dean started his story groggily. He was also looking at the almost empty glass in his hands as if it was the most interesting almost empty glass he'd ever seen. "She's, uh, she's terrific. She wouldn't take any shit from anybody, and she's sharp. So … yeah."

"Yeah. She's a brilliant woman."

Dean lifted his face slowly to Castiel, and he could see that the blue eyes before him didn't look as bright as before. "Um, you keep saying that. Everything's good between you two?"

"Well, because she is," Castiel answered, still as flat as before, only this time it was supported by a shrug. 

"Right," Dean quickly returned his attention to his glass. There was an uneasy feeling inside his chest as he heard Castiel's reply, and he probably knew _why he_ felt that way.

"Dean," Castiel realised that his answer might come off badly and too cold to Dean, and it wasn't even his fault entirely that he felt this way. He wanted to say something that might lighten up the mood, but he couldn't think of any. He looked up and saw Dean's expression was slightly shadowed by fear, or sadness. "Don't think much about it, Dean. Just … good luck, I guess, to all of us."

Dean's olive-coloured eyes moved down to Castiel's stretched hand, then they went up again to meet Castiel's glassy ocean-coloured eyes. "Okay," he finally responded and shook the hand in front of him.

As their hands met, Castiel could feel an electric-like shiver slithered from the back of his neck and all along his spine. He felt like saying more words to Dean. He felt like explaining _more_ or even telling Dean how he actually _feels_ for him, and how the current situation has been _burdening_ him. But his mouth suddenly went numb, and his entire body just froze. 

It was either he didn't dare to say or do anything, being cautious from demanding further, or he was _afraid_ . Afraid that he wanted to touch Dean, afraid that he wanted — _needed_ — more of Dean. 

Probably it really was wiser to take his distance with Dean Winchester.

"I-I'm going to try to sleep. They will start early tomorrow," Cas threw back the rest of the wine and put the glass on the sink. "Good night, Dean."

"Good night, Cas."

He walked to the sofa bed, without looking back to see what Dean was doing after he left him in the kitchen. Castiel also didn't look at which sofa bed was his side, he took the empty side next to Gabriel and let out a long sigh as he put his head on the fluffy pillow. Castiel might be more tired than he thought; from the all-day work that he did, driving for four hours, and having to deal with the sudden surprise, it was exhausting. The last thing he remembered was pulling the blanket to cover half of his face, then turned away from Gabriel, facing Balthazar. From there, it was all darkness and the surreal world of dreams for Castiel.


	12. Chaotic Wayward Angel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning where everything officially begins, from family activities to frustration with the freckled-faced man.

It probably wasn’t something big, or shocking even. But, clearly, that wasn’t something that Castiel expected to hear at seven in the morning after a wine-infused deep sleep that he had for the past five hours. All he could do as a response was stare at his sister and blink, twice, before he continued to drink his orange juice.

“Come on, Cassie!” Abaddon sat next to her big brother and glared at him. “We haven’t done this since we were, what, nine?”

“Because we have a reason why we didn’t do that anymore, Abbie,” Castiel replied and put the mug down on the coaster, he could hear Michael giggled while watching his younger siblings. “We have been more  _ active  _ on  _ other  _ activities, and it burnt  _ more _ calories than doing aerobics apparently.”

“Cas, come on, just humour Abbie, will ya?” Michael, who sat opposite him on the dining table, leant forward and then he showed the same victorious smile with Abaddon. “Look, I'll join you guys. It’s been a while since I last worked out, and it should be fun doing it with everyone, right? Let’s take Gabriel along. Where is he?”

The younger brother flicked his head to the sofa bed direction, “Still asleep. I think he has a jetlag or something. Fine, I’ll do it. Hey, where are your kids? They were here before.”

“You should know by now, once they meet their cousins, they’ll just disappear. God knows where. We’ll shout their name later when we’re about to start, they'll bound to pop out from nowhere,” Michael let out a dramatic sigh before he drank his coffee, then turned to the two figures sitting on the kitchen island, and looked like they had an argument over something. “What about them? What are they arguing abou-didn’t they just met last night? Why are they arguing already?”

“ _ Civil War _ ,” both Castiel and Abaddon answered in unison.

Michael turned his head in puzzlement to the twins, “Come again?”

“They just found out last night that they were basically the same geeky person,” Castiel explained as he poured more orange juice, “well, not exactly the same maybe, if they’re now arguing over a film. But, yeah, you got the point.”

The elder brother had his expression frozen for a moment in the state of between shocked and utterly confused, but he then chuckled as he heard the explanation from the younger brother. Micahel then continued watching Dean and Charlie who were sitting side by side with a laptop open between them, and clearly, they were having a difference in opinion about whatever it was they were watching. 

“No, Charlie, Cap was only trying to protect his friend, his Bucky, and Bucky was under Hydra’s influence when he killed Tony’s parents, mind you.”

“But he should be held responsible, not running away like that.”

“Tony was trying to kill him! Out of rage!”

“You know, maybe i should thank you both,” Michael started, “you have made this weekend even more interesting than it should be. They both are the perfect addition to Dad’s party. If it was up to me, if anything unfortunate ever happened between you both and them — God forbid — we might keep them both instead of you two.”

_ “Hey!” _

“Auntie Abaddon, come on! Let’s do some aerobics!”

Daniel, Raphaela’s youngest, ran over to Abaddon and started to pull her arm. “Momma said that you would teach us some dance moves.”

“ _ I would? _ ” as she asked her nephew, Abaddon looked up and there was Raphaela, standing near the fridge. Based on the suspicious grin that she was showing Abaddon, it was clear that she wanted to escape her motherly responsibilities and throw it to Abaddon instead. The aunt then protested without words to the mother, that only made Raphaela laughter burst. “I guess  _ I am _ going to teach you how to dance, Danny. But first, could you wake Uncle Gabe and Uncle Balthy there?”

Daniel then turned to the direction of the sofa bed that Abaddon was pointed at, where there were two men still sleeping peacefully. The little child then looked back to Abaddon and nodded vigorously with a glint of joy in his black eyes. On the next second, the boy had run to the living room direction, and there was a joyful call coming from that direction.

“UNCLE GABE, UNCLE BALTHY, WAKE UP! LET’S DO AEROBICS!

It was already late when Castiel arrived with Charlie last night, so the view of the lake was mostly lights and clouds. But, when he walked out of the house this morning and saw the view in front of him now, Castiel felt that it was really worth it to wake up early. The lake was calm, and it was quiet and serene. There were small boats sailing here and there, and seagulls were flying back and forth searching for food. 

Him, on the other hand, was in the middle of a family aerobics — accompanied by Billy Joel’s  _ We Didn’t Start The Fire _ — lead by Abaddon, who was surprisingly good in Zumba. Castiel looked around to his family and noticed the small ones were excited to learn dance moves, while his cousins were laughing and dancing, although more like with each other than following Abaddon.

“Hey, Dean, show them what you got!”

Abaddon suddenly turned and pulled Dean to move up front, “He might not look like it, guys, but Dean is a fantastic salsa dancer. Show them, Dean.”

Castiel unknowingly took a deep breath when he felt Dean walk past him. He then took a quick glance at their direction, when Abaddon leant over to Dean to whisper something to his ear, and they both laughed. It was an adorable moment, but Castiel couldn’t lie that he had to give all of his effort to push down the unwanted jealousy inside his chest when he saw that. 

“Anytime you’re ready, Dean,” Rowena called from the back of the group and the song changed to ABBA’s  _ Dancing Queen _ .

“Oh my God!” Dean laughed as the intro blasted, he then turned around to face the lady of the house. There was a shy boyish smile on his face, that would completely charm everyone who saw it, before he gave a formal bow to Rowena, and threw her a kiss. “You’re a queen, Rowena! Okay, guys, let’s go.”

“Hey, Cas, come here, you stand here.”

It all happened so fast for Castiel, he could hardly have time to process. One moment he was holding his breath. Next, Dean was being chummy with his Mum, and now Gabriel moved him right behind Dean. Castiel had a front-row experience of seeing Dean stepped and swung, even swaying his hips, right in front of his eyes. 

It was a  _ hard _ morning for Castiel.

When the torturous aerobics finally ended, Castiel couldn’t deny that his body felt quite good and fresh. He sat on the porch stairs, catching his breath. Behind him, Charlie and Gabriel were talking about something that he couldn’t catch, while in front of him was the sight that he still had problems to accept. Abaddon and Dean being playful and laughing together.

“Hey, Cassie, Charlie told me that you guys are in love with crepe cakes,” Gabriel moved one step down to sit next to his little brother, while Charlie also moved to be on the other side of Castiel. “I can make it for Dad’s birthday.”

“Really? Wait, this is not one of your tricks, right?” Castiel squinted suspiciously to his big brother since it seemed too easy for him to get Gabriel to make the dessert that he wants. 

“What? No,” said Gabriel defensively.

“Usually you’d wait until I ask, or beg, you to make one for me,” shot Castiel.

Gabriel let out a fake surprise gasp and placed a hand on his chest, “How could you think so low of me-well, Dad asked me to make a birthday cake and I didn't have any idea what to make until Charlie told me the crepe cake story.”

Castiel wanted to protest, but he was too impressed by Gabriel’s ability to talk that long in one inhale of breath, with a change of tone as well. “What flavour are you going to make?”

“I think tiramisu will do, it’s quite classic,” Gabriel hummed as he lost in his own thought, “okay, Charlie and I will start making the dessert and pastries for tonight’s dessert and tomorrow’s party, do you mind shopping for the ingredients, Cas?”

“Sure,” Castiel replied with a shrug, “can you make a list of what you will need?”

Gabriel stood up, “Wait here, I'll check what we have and make a list for you.”

He might be the older brother for Castiel, but somehow Gabriel was more squirrelly and childish compared to Castiel. Also, the unspoken fact between them that Gabriel was smaller than Castiel. And Abbadon. Only slightly.

“What’s up with Gabe?” Abaddon came and sat on the stair, one step below Castiel and Charlie. “You wanna sit, Dean?”

“Nah, I’m good, thanks,” Dean stood before them, still in his hooded jacket and shorts. He smiled at Castiel and Charlie while sweeping his hair backwards with his fingers, not realising the effect of what he did to a certain Shurley/Novak man in front of him. “How’re you guys? I hope the workout session before was alright.”

“Oh, no worries, Dean, it was great,” Charlie replied quickly, since she noticed the particular  _ discomfort _ on Castiel before, and would rather Castiel have more time to think of another answer.

“Yeah, it felt good to have a morning workout like that,” Castiel smiled at Dean. “Thank you, guys, for the session.”

“See? Told you it would be fun,” once again Abaddon smiled triumphantly to her brother. “So, what’s up with Gabe?” 

“Oh yeah, he’s gonna make a cake for Charles’ birthday, and he’s currently making the shopping list for Cas to buy,” Charlie looked back inside the house as she replied.

“Really? Finally, I can see Gabriel making desserts again,” Abaddon turned to Dean, “Gabe is a dessert wizard, Dean, you can tell him about a cake that you had and can’t get it out of your head, and he can recreate it, just like that. Even tasted better.”

“Bloody hell.”

_ What? Who taught him that? _

“Maybe I should ask him to make my favourite pie,” Dean hummed, but it was out loud enough for the other three people to hear it and laughed.

“Yeah, you can try,” Abaddon shrugged, “by the way, do you wanna go shopping with Cas? You love grocery shopping, right?”

_ Of course, he  _ loves _ grocery shopping, and such  _ perfect _ timing to reveal that fact as well! _

“Castiel, darling.”

When he heard his name being called by a particular feminine Scottish accent that was highly familiar to his ear, Castiel knew the call would be related to the situation that he would go out doing grocery shopping for Gabriel. “Yes, Mum?”

“Gabriel said, you’re going to the market? Can I also give you my shopping list?” Rowena showed up and she was now on his knees behind Castiel and hugging her baby boy.

“Sure, Mum,” there was a warmth of happiness inside Castiel as he felt his Mum was babying him, and he couldn’t help himself not to smile.

“Okay, are you going alone or with Gabriel?”

“No, Gabriel stays with Charlie to prepare the cake making,” suddenly the big brother showed from the house with a paper and placed himself next to his little brother and mother “Here’s the list, Cassie. So, are you going by yourself or with who?”

“ _ Dean _ can go with him,” Abaddon smiled and turned to Dean. “Dean loves grocery shopping, and he can be a bit annoying, Cassie. Don’t let him get on your nerves, okay?”

Castiel sat there and wondered if this weekend was the karma of him for taking advantages from many men he met at the bar for sex. Maybe his father was right all along, fornication is one of the major sins and he shouldn’t do it.

“Cassie, if you’re shopping, make sure they have paper bags or cardboard boxes, okay?” Raphaela, being the environment enthusiast, patted Castiel’s shoulder as she walked past the small group on the stairs.

“Of course, Raphaela,” Castiel gave Raphaela’s hand a quick squeeze.

“Rowena, you’ve got your list?” Dean asked the Mother who was still hugging the Son and they both were giggling over Gabriel’s bedhead hair that insisted to flaunt itself, even after the aerobics session.

The lady of the house turned her attention from her son to the man in front of them. Rowena smiled and tapped her pockets, “Oh, yes, darling, it’s in my phone, but I think I left it inside or in the room. I’ll send the list to you later, okay, my Wayward Angel?”

“Yes, Mum,” Castiel could feel his cheeks turned several deeper shades of red as he felt his mother kiss his cheek.

“Wait, what is this Wayward Angel thing you called him?” Dean asked Rowena.

“Well, he’s my wee angel, and Abaddon is my wee warrior. When Cassie was little, he was … well, I used to think we mixed up their names,” Rowena chuckled, “Cassie was  _ chaotic _ , he was Gabriel’s protege and they both — well, they three with Abaddon — used to pull pranks on everyone in the house.”

“Really?” Dean was so excited with Rowena’s explanation, that he went back and forth to the twins.

“Yes, Abaddon was smarter in hiding her cheekiness, unlike Gabriel and Castiel,” Rowena continued, “I mean, every time the three of them was caught in mischief, Abaddon would be the one who distracted her father, and everybody else, with her flowy ginger hair and big blue eyes.”

There was a tone of pride in Rowena’s voice as she saw her only daughter bowed politely from her seat.

“So Castiel was the one who, well,  _ destroyed _ things, and Abaddon was the _ guardian angel _ for the boys?” Dean asked and there was an expression of disbelief in his face.

“Yes. See? I should switch their names when they were young,” Rowena chuckled. “Although I’m proud how my wee warrior managed to destroy all rules and be who she is now,” the mother leant forward to plant a kiss on her daughter’s head.

“Thanks, Mum,” there was a visible look of love and gratitude in Abaddon’s blue eyes as her mother said that.

“Okay, Mum, can we let Castiel and Dean go shopping now?” Gabriel poked his head in the centre of everybody’s attention. “The cake that I want to make will need an  _ overnight _ stay in the fridge, so the earlier we start, the better it will come out.”

Even though Gabriel had given his reason why Castiel and Dean should be off to shopping soon, Castiel still honestly wondered if his big brother  _ and _ his twin were suspecting that there was something going on between him and Dean. Since Gabriel seemed so eager in having Charlie to help him make the cake, then there was also Abaddon who seemed so keen on  _ pushing _ Dean to go shopping with Castiel. 

On the other hand, he wouldn’t deny that this weekend had been good to him so far. To see his family blend in well with Charlie and Dean was such a sight. He was glad that Charlie could find a family in his, and he would be more than happy to have Charlie as an adoptive family member.

Dean, on the other hand.

Castiel still couldn’t decide what he was feeling about Dean.

He walked out from the bathroom after changing his sweaty t-shirt to a clean one and put on the deodorant spray. Castiel put his wallet and Gabriel’s list into his jeans pocket then walked out of the house to meet Dean. 

He was wondering what the loud diesel sound he was hearing when he saw the source.

“Oh,  _ fuck me _ ,” he muttered under his breath.

A 1967 Chevrolet Impala. Black

That was the loud diesel sound he was hearing.


End file.
